Wildfire
by Ketheria
Summary: AU Ranma Saotome fell into the Nyaniichuan... or did he? This story assumes he did not. Updated Prologue, Chapters 1 to 6 & Interlude. Added Chapter 7
1. Wildfire Prologue

_DISCLAIMER: I lay no claim to characters from Ranma 1/2;, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Ah! My Goddess! Or any other character of any other anime that may, inadvertently or not, be within this story. They are the property of their respective authors. Characters and situations from those series are used without their consent. This is a work of fanfiction for which I do not expect nor will accept compensation._

_This fiction is based upon Ranma 1/2;, with strong influence from Ah! My Goddess and lesser cameos from the Sailors and possibly Tenchi. Champions of the 'true' fiancée probably won't like my portrayal of Akane or Shampoo. Ukyo gets off a little better, but she doesn't get lucky either. As it is a work of fan fiction, I am not trying to duplicate the canon Manga or Anime characters. Expect some (or a lot) of O.O.C.._

_**WILDFIRE**_

_**A fire raging out of control that destroys all that it touches, and yet, makes way for the growth of new life. **_

_------ Prologue 00 ------_

The war could be said to be going badly for both sides. Neither side had won a decisive victory and both were worn down from the decades long border conflict. Another battle was underway near a sacred ground of blessed waters. The defenders valiantly fought to prevent the foe from reaching the most sacred valley in their kingdom.

However, this time, the battle was different. This time, the foe had help. The defending warriors knew they were over matched, but in their entire two hundred-year history, never had they failed in their duty to their country. Their fledgling country would not fail in the defense of the Queen and her Kingdom without exacting a severe price.

The Kingdom in turn had never failed to lend aid when truly needed. The injured called out prayers for the Kingdom to swiftly come to aid the defense of the sacred lands. The uninjured called for the strength to continue the fight, calling upon the guardian of their ancestors.

As the Sol's golden orb slipped beyond the western mountains, the foe finally pulled back. A dark tide against the walls of the valley as a tall figure loomed forth from the darkness, backlit by the remaining light of the sunset. Its eyes appeared to be aglow with a sickly green fire as a challenge was called forth.

The signal fire, lit to warn of the attack, flared even brighter. A small figure strode forth, a blazing sword held casually in hand. Many warriors fell to one knee, bowing their heads in reverence as she walked among them.

In the sky, the blue green crescent of the moon hung like a turquoise scarab amongst the diamonds, rubies and sapphires of the stars. Bright flares of light and a sullen red-orange glow became increasingly visible in the deepening darkness on the night side of the Luna, the moon. The warriors too injured to fight who were praying for help from the Queen cried out in horror. Quickly the despair spread through the ranks as the realization that the Kingdom hadn't come to their aid because it was in need of aid itself.

The green eyed foe sneered derisively at the crimson eyed warrior. Her strength was highest during the day and weakest now, just after sunset. He laughed and gloated over the defeats going on all over the Kingdom. It was to be his pleasure to finally be rid of the her.

The battle roared to life once more, as the two great warriors clashed in the middle. The dark horde descended upon the valiant defenders. Their blood ran like water, mixing with that of the attackers. For every warrior that fell, four of the foe dropped. The blessed water ran red with the life of the fallen.

The battle centered upon the champions. Power exploded forth, as the conflict became increasingly vicious. The despair of the warriors only served to feed the green-eyed foe even as the dying rays of the sunset sapped the fiery maiden's strength. The end was inevitable.

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Finally weakened to the point of collapse, the crimson-eyed warrior failed to block a crushing blow to the stomach. She collapsed, eyes wide and mouth gaping, in agony. Hands like bands of iron encircled her throat, lifted her up and held her there as she struggled to draw a breath.

She had been told not to come. Her honor would not allow her to stay away, however, and now she would pay the price of disobedience. Her only regret was that she had failed to defeat her opponent. She had failed to prevent the fall.

A flash of silver drew her eyes to the moon hanging low on the horizon. Contentment mixed with the sorrow as she realized that all was not lost. There would be a future... for some. Her sacrifice was not in vain.

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Laughing in a maniacal frenzy, the green eyed foe knelt and thrust her beneath the tainted waters of the central pool and held her there. As the fiery maiden's struggles weakened, the globe of silvery radiance spread forth from the moon. In its wake, nothing but desolation remained. Of Luna, the seat of the Silver Millenium, home to the royal court of Serenity, only ashes remained. Where once was the verdant moon, replete with life, now a dull, gray, lifeless orb covered with glowing craters hung.

The radiance washed over the valley just as the struggles ceased in the pool. The silent wall of power ended the violent conflict in the valley. Those given totally to the darkness were swept away, banished to a dark realm fitting their evil nature. As the wall of silver radiance washed over the pool, it erupted with a wave of fire. The golden inferno swept out over the valley behind the silver radiance flaying those who remained, burning away the remaining seed of evil buried in their souls. Those foe not swept away by the first wave were purified by the second.

The green-eyed foe was not spared either death strike. His spirit was torn asunder. The darkness and evil that had possessed him was stripped away and sealed. Only the buried core of the original warrior remained, purified by the flames of his opponent, seared clean of the remaining taint in his body and soul.

As he lay there, weakened and unable to defend himself, he wept. Tears of relief that the madness was gone. Tears of sorrow over the evil he had been a part of, even though he had no control. He felt his life ebbing away... his greatest regret was his inability to atone for his actions. He barely felt the rough hands that thrust him beneath a pool's surface. A warm, brilliant light illuminated the darkness of his mind, guiding him, at last, to peace.

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"What? Done already pop?" quipped the pigtailed young man as he balanced atop the pole.

'Why don't they ever listen?'

"Mister Customer fall in spring of Drowned Panda."

The pool stilled momentarily as the cursed water worked its magic.

"Very tragic tale of giant panda that drowned in spring, two thousand year ago."

The water began to froth as a dark shape swelled within.

"Now, whoever fall in spring..."

With a roar and spray of water, a massive white and black shape leapt from the pool and landed heavily upon the sturdy bamboo pole that only moments before sagged under the bulk of the older martial artist.

"...take body of giant panda" The guide finished.

"Wh.. wha.. what the heck is THAT?" stammered the younger visitor as he stated at the large panda in shock. "Y-you never said anything about this!"

The panda roared and leapt to the attack, nearly catching the young martial artist. Even though young sir was skilled enough to evade the initial blow, the older customer's attacks immediately had the young man on the defensive. 'It is only a matter of time,' the guide thought.

The youth avoid the Spring of Drowned Rat. He caught himself on the bamboo pole above the Spring of Drowned Demon Tiger, and thus avoided the curse of the long tooth. Still trading blows, the pair leapt over the Spring of the Drowned Falcon to land on poles at either end of the Spring of Drowned Wolf.

"Whoa, Pop! Stop it! Ya trying ta curse me, too?" the young sir yelled at the cursed man. The pause in the action was very brief, as the older customer regained his balance and leapt to the attack. The pair exchanged blows and danced across the valley toward the pacing native.

"Oh Sirs! You stop now, yes? You going wrong way!" the guide yelled as the struggle brought his newest customers close to his position once more. He shook his head in awe when the young man avoided the cursed Spring of Drowned Young Girl by bouncing off head of the cursed panda-man. Once more, the fight turned toward the middle of the valley. Running along the edge, the guide finally saw the young man stagger as one of the older bamboo pole splintered when he landed on it. Without enough leverage to leap clear, he was helpless to avoid the panda's final blow.

That blow knocked him into the oldest spring in the valley, the Spring of Destiny. The legends never explained how or why, but that one spring held the power of all the springs of the valley. There was no way to know what curse the Spring of Destiny would place on the young martial artist. Each customer who managed to reach the central pool acquired a unique curse.

The tradition was to explain to the customer that they had fallen into the spring which the curse patterned them after. If the young man was fortunate, the curse would manifest in a human form.

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Ranma knew he was in trouble. The pole splintered as he landed, throwing off his balance. He was barely able to recover enough to remain atop the wrecked pole. Hearing another roar from the enraged panda, he tried to leap away. The weakened and splintered pole crumbled beneath him, robbing him of the height needed to avoid the blow.

Time seemed to slow as he found himself plunging through the air. Rage quickly overcame shock as he twisted about and saw the pool's placid waters reflecting the golden sun in a sparkling wave of brilliance. He was quickly able to determine that there was no way for him to avoid the glowing waters beneath him. A strange sense of peace and familiarity mingled with sorrow came over him.

A burning yet at the same time, oddly comforting, sensation like fire raced along the young martial artist's body when he impacted the waters face first. As with his father, the pool stilled.

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Genma smirked down at the pool below him. 'Ha! Victory!' he thought. 'That'll show that snot nosed punk I am still the master!'

"Oh! Too, too sad!" the native guide yelled from his position near the edge of the springs. "Young Sir fall in oldest spring. Legends say is Spring of Destiny..."

The waters ripple, scattering light that... must be reflections from the sunset... Genma decided. The waters couldn't be glowing the bright gold of the setting sun... could it?

"Very Tragic Story of first spring of all Jusenkyo," the guide continued. "It have power of all springs in valley."

'Power? What power?' Genma wondered.

A gasp of breath drew his attention back to the pool his son had fallen into as a head broke the surface of the water. Wild crimson locks whipped up like ropes of liquid fire as the figure drew in deep, gasping breath... threw its head back... and screamed.

"Now, if anyone fall in spring, take a form from one or more of Springs."

Genma could plainly see that the person in the spring was not his son. The soaked gi left no doubt in his mind that this person was a girl.

The fiery haired girl hung her head as shaking hands grasped the lapels of her gi. A barely controlled tug opened the top enough to confirm that indeed, those were what they seemed. The petite young body quivered as the air began to ripple and glow around her.

"Ah! Young sir very lucky," the guide continued. "He only have curse of Nyaniichuan, Spring of Drowned Girl!"

A sound began... low at first, but rapidly gaining in volume, "oooOOOYAAAAAAGIIIII!!!" Shrieked the young girl as a golden aura sprang into place about her causing the air nearby to shimmer and a strange hissing sound from the pool.

"Growf, Groweroo?!" sputtered the fat panda. 'Ran.. Ranma?!' Finally, the reality of what he was seeing began to sink in.

The girl's head... his SON's head, snapped up and around and pinned him with a glare full of fire, literally. For the first time Ranma's face was fully and clearly visible. Her eyes were glowing brilliant blue-white and were bracketed by flickering crimson marks. A starburst flickered upon her forehead as did a trio of lines curving away from her eyes on each cheek.

'Perhaps bringing Ranma here wasn't such a good idea,' the panda-cursed man thought.

"GENMA..." She spat at the man-turned-panda. Her aura flared even brighter, and looked like actual flames surrounding her. As it intensified, her eyes changed to a crimson hue. The flickering marks steadied into a solid red-gold.

'Perhaps punishing Ranma by knocking him into a pool wasn't such a good idea either,' Genma's thoughts continued

"Noooo..." her hand shot upward palm to the sky and the sunlight seemed to flare even brighter.

The panda was further shocked by the sight of a ball of brilliant light growing in the palm of that hand. 'A Ki technique?' Genma gaped, amazed at what he was seeing, 'Since when had Ran...'

"BAAKAAA!"

Far too late, Genma realized his peril. Although he started the Saotome Final Attack, he had run out of time. As he turned to flee his enraged and glowing son-turned-daughter, her hand shot down. With an almost casual flick of the wrist, she released the fiery ball which streaked unerringly to the tail of the fleeing panda-man.

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The blast shook the trees in the area and knocked the guide to his knees, but other than that, nothing happened. Correction. Nothing else had happened to him.

As the guide shakily go to his feet he looked toward where Mister Customer had fled and saw a blackened form twitching in a small circle of charred dirt. Smoke drifted up from the unconscious panda-man as he groaned in pain. Amazingly enough, the blast damage had contained itself to the few feet surrounding him.

His view of the young miss was obscured by a heavy cloud of mist or steam. He carefully threaded his way down the only safe path into the depths of the valley. As the cloud cleared, he found the young customer, restored to his male form, lying against the bank of the steaming remains of the Pool of Destiny.

"So strange. That never happen before," murmured the guide. Clouds began obscuring the sun as another shower common to Jusenkyo gathered.

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In the darkness, a moan could be heard.

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Ranma groaned and opened his eyes, blinking in an attempt to clear them. The sound of rain upon a thatch roof created a pleasant backdrop to the sounds of pots boiling atop a small wood-burning stove. The familiar aroma of cooking rice roused him fully. Looking around, he found himself in a small dirt floored room with a bead curtain separating it from another room. The strong aroma of pipe tobacco permeated the air. He wrinkled his nose at the scent, not being fond of tobacco. At least it smelled better than the cigarettes or cigars some people insisted on polluting their bodies with.

Swinging his feet over the edge of the creaking cot, Ranma stood and stretched. It felt like he had slept for days. What was he doing in a hut, anyway? Who was that in the other room? He certainly didn't move like Pops.

"Ahhh! Young sir is awake. Are you hungry?" a man's voice called, his Japanese almost painfully broken, from the other room.

Ranma stepped to the curtain and focused upon the man tending the steaming pots. His stomach growled the answer for him as he ginned sheepishly up at the older man.

"Uhhh, Yes. Thanks," Ranma said gratefully, accepting a heaping bowl of rice and vegetables. "Where is my father?" Ranma frowned as he heard himself. "That's weird," he muttered to himself. "Since when did I start calling that baka 'father'?" He shrugged it off as the food before him and the guide's explanation grabbed his attention.

"It is an honor, young sir. This one has watched over young sir for Mister Customer while he searches for help at nearby Musk village. He gone for two days, now," the guide added."This one believe he not find Musk welcome as friendly as he hoped. With young sir now awake..."

"Two days?" Ranma interrupted, "He has been gone two days?" After the guide nodded, he continued. "How long was I out?"

"Young sir not out. Young sir stay in hut in bed, mostly." The older man answered helpfully.

"What? NO!" he slapped a palm to his face for a moment before continuing, "How long was I, asleep?"

"Ahh, young sir has slept almost three days."

"Three days!" snorts Ranma, "Figures that fat Baka ran off. Probably ran off to feed his fat stomach while I was, asleep." He muttered to himself as he quickly finished another bowl of steamed rice and vegetables.

"Guess I'd better go after him," the young martial artist said after setting the chopsticks and bowl aside. "No telling what Oyaji will do this time. Probably sell me for bowl of soup and an umbrella. Thanks, for the food and all." He stood and started for the door.

The guide paled and quickly asked, "Young sir, perhaps want to wait until rain stops? Is no good if get wet again."

"What do you mean?" Ranma asked, puzzled, "It's just a little rain. I've been in worse."

"Uhh, young sir, no remember?"

"Remember what?"

"You... no remember falling in cursed spring?" the guide asked after a momentary hesitation.

"Cursed spring?" Ranma's eyes widened for a moment, then he demanded, "What are you talking about?"

"Three days ago, Mister Customer and young sir came to Jusenkyo, Legendary Training Ground of Accused Springs..."

"Accursed Springs! I don't remember hearing anything about cursed springs from Pops," Ranma said impatiently.

"These are grounds of Accursed Springs of Jusenkyo. That mean Pools of Sorrow. Once, many, many year ago, this land used as training ground for greatest of warriors. Now, training ground used no more because of Pools of Sorrow. There over one hundred spring here, each with own tragic tale. Each with own curse..." The guide rambled on, as he started his usual spiel.

"There you go with the curses again! What do you mean by curses?" Ranma interrupted

The guide flinched from the glare Ranma was giving him. "Whoever fall in spring cursed to take form of whatever drowned there in past. Very tragic. Mister Customer fall in spring of Drowned Panda."

"No," denied Ranma, a look of horror slowly came over his face as he remembered what he had assumed was only a strange dream.

"Mister Customer then chase and knock honored sir into oldest spring in Jusenkyo. Spring of Destiny. It give young sir curse like Nyaniichuan, Spring of drowned..."

"Young girl," Ranma chorused with the guide, who nodded sadly.

"B-but. I'm not a g-girl!" Ranma sputtered as he patted himself down with apparent relief. Nothing was were it shouldn't be.

"Curse reversed with hot water, young sir," the guide explained, "but, cold water turn back into girl again. There is no cure, except maybe Amazons know."

Ranma gazed levelly at the guide without responding. A few minutes went by and the guide started fidgeting nervously under the gaze, then dropped his own and bowed his head, "This one sorry. He not able to stop tragedy. This one try to warn, but customers never listen until it too late."

A few more moments went by again before Ranma shook his head and responded stiffly, "Not your fault. It's just one more thing, one more stupid thing, that I'll never forgive him for. What else are you not telling me?"

The guide started, but his head remained down. "The curse act strange with honored sir. Many, many times, Musk warriors use Nyaniichuan to create brides. They use monkeys, bears, tigers, wolves, sometimes prisoners. Not one before look like honored sir's curse form."

"Go on," Ranma growled out

"Too, Spring of Destiny gone. It dry up. No more Spring. Where pool was, is now empty. Only one way that happen, say ancient scroll, is," The guide paused nervously and slowly lifted his eyes to gaze into Ranma's blue-white eyes.

The young Saotome heir simply waited for the older man to finish.

"Only way is for Honored Sir to take spirit in spring into self," the guide finished.

"What? No way., " whispered Ranma. He stared at the guide for a moment longer, then placed a hand upon his shoulder and frowned as the guide flinched. "Are you tryin ta tell me that I got the spirit of some dead girl in me now?"

"I only say - what scroll say," the guide replied hesitantly. "Too, it say only possible if souls same. Different spirits no can unite. If true, then you was once drowned here long, long ago. Scrolls not tell how old that spring was, but is believed to be first and oldest. Very powerful."

"But, I don't believe in reincarnation," the boy protested, "and, I can't be a girl! I'm a Guy! Girls are weak and stupid."

"Spring not care what you believe, Honored Sir, only what is Destiny." the older man shrugged.

Releasing the guide Ranma sighed and plopped into his seat, "Yah, whatever."

The guide nodded without comment. The pair sat for a time as the guide calmly smoked his pipe.

"By the way, I'm Saotome Ranma," the young man informed the guide, "not 'Honored Sir.' That's just too weird."

"This one is honored to know this, but, this one is not worthy enough to use it. Honored sir saved this worthless one and Plum from Musk warriors."

"What do you mean?"

"Honored miss stood in door and threw glowing ball at the Musk. Like the one she," He flinched at Ranma's sudden glare, "sorry, he, threw at Mr. Customer right after cursed. Big explosion knocked this one down, but Mr. Customer was burned as by great fire. Honored Sir do same to Musk Warriors. Plum is this ones child, she also have curse from normal Nyaniichuan, but is only little girl. Musk see her and chase. They always seek wife, but Plum too, too young. As she run from Musk, young miss... err, sir was miss at time... stand in door and throw ball of fire at Musk. This one and Plum unharmed, but Musk all burnt, but alive. They run away. Honored Sir, very powerful to have control like that."

"Uhhh hum, and I was a girl at the time? Why can't I remember any of that?" Ranma muttered to himself.

"After Musk gone, young miss, or sir, go back in hut," the guide continued, "This one find sir as he is now asleep on bed. Musk no come back."

"How is this possible?" Ranma asked, "I don't remember any of that. I do sorta remember the pool and being mad at Pops, but..." he trailed off in confusion.

"This one not know, Honored Sir. Perhaps Niechezu Elders know," the older man offered. "They have longest history along with Musk and one other tribe in region. If any know, they may. Musk no can be trusted. Niechezu have strict honor, strict laws. If young sir no break any of their law, they may help. They help many customers of Jusenkyo in past."

A sudden, wild gust of wind blew aside the door hanging and slashed rain into the room. Ranma twitched as he felt a burning tingle all over as the change happened. She looked down at herself in shock and growing anger.

"Chikuso!" she spat as she turned to the doorway. "That, that, BAKA! Oyaji kept calling me a girl. Kept calling me unmanly, and weak, and he finally got his wish." Ranma put a foot outside and shouted, "Ya hear that, Oyaji? Ya kept callin me a girl. Well, ya got yer stupid wish, ya fool!" A golden aura similar to flame erupted around her. Smoke started to drift up from where her hand grasped the wooden door frame.

"H-honored s-s-sir?" stammered the guide staring at the glowing girl in shock.

"WHAT?" snapped the red head without turning.

"Do honored sir want this one to make hot water?" he asked, hopefully.

Ranma stood glaring out into the nighttime rain. Slowly, she relaxed and the bright aura vanished. Her hair started to whip about as another strong gust of wind slashed through the valley. Abruptly, she gasped in pain as lightning flared nearby and the walls of the hut shook from the explosion of nearby thunder.

The guide watched with no small amount of worry as light seemed to flare from under the hands she pressed to her face. After the light faded, she staggered over to the vacant chair. Ranma gave a strangled, "Please."

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Twenty minutes and four brief transformations later, she sighed in defeat, "Stop, that's enough." Ranma shook her head and stared out the open doorway. "There is not much sense in continuing this with it raining like it is. The curse must really want me to stay this way for now. Tell me about these Niechezu who may have a cure." Ranma asks as she moved her chair closer to the stove.

The guide nods, relieved, and begins to talk as Ranma pondered over her change.

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Ranma sat on a cliff overlooking part of the valley of the Pools of Sorrow. Her feet dangled over the edge as she watched the nearly perpetual mists drift by below. Sighing, she lay back and closed her eyes. It had been six days since her old man had run off and left her here. Six days in which she had spent all of an hour in her true form after she awoke in the guide's hut.

Whenever she tried to change back, somehow cold water would find her again in a very short amount of time. Worse, the longest she had stayed male was all of thirty minutes. The last ten of which in agony as her head pounded as if a herd of elephants were using it as a springboard.

When she finally got splashed with water once again, the pain instantly diminished to a dull throb. That lingering pain faded rapidly, and within a few minutes was gone. Since then, she had decided to remain in her cursed form for a few days. Perhaps then it would let her be her true self.

This new body didn't like the chill mists of the lower valley that much. But here on the cliff, where the sun shone brightly, she felt comfortable. She smirked as she thought about her old man. He would certainly call lying about in the sun, soaking up the warmth, a lazy and girlish action, but at the moment, Ranma could hardly care what the panda thought.

A shadow blocked the sun from her face, interrupting her thoughts. She opened her eyes to look at the cloud shading her.

"WHaaaA!" she yelped, startled by the person leaning over her. She hadn't even felt anyone approach. With a tuck and a roll, she was on her feet in an instant facing the stranger. Finally, she was able to see the person fully.

"W-who the he- he- HECK, are you!" Ranma stammered at the barely clad woman hovering a foot off the ground.

With a smile that sent shivers up Ranma's back, the stunningly beautiful woman replied with, "Hiya Kiddo! I'm glad to see ya."

"Uhhh," Ranma replied, "do I know you?"

"In a way." the stranger answered, "I'm afraid you aren't supposed to be awake, yet."

"What d'ya mean?" Ranma glanced up at the sky. It was well past midday.

"Here," the floating woman said, holding out a silver piece of jewelry to the wary girl.

Ranma looked at the woman carefully. Aside from the fact she wasn't even touching the ground, she looked normal enough for a gaijin. Ranma sensed she should be able to trust her. The woman made no move to force her to take whatever she was offering, so she decided to take a chance.

"What's this?" Ranma asked. He looked at the clasp briefly before he stiffened and jumped back. "Hey! I ain't wearin no girly stuff like that! I am a guy!"

"Not at the moment, Kiddo. But, if you keep this on your body, you will be able to be Ranma without the pain," the golden skinned beauty replied.

Ranma's eyes lit up at that. "Y-you mean, that'll cure the curse?" Her tone and posture radiated the hope blossoming from within.

Shaking her head slowly, her silvery hair rippling in the air, the floating woman explained, "No. What it will do is allow you to BE Ranma without the headaches. Water will still change your shape, but you will be able to be Ranma again."

Ranma pondered the offering for a few moments. If this trinket would allow her to change to her uncursed form without the pain, then that would certainly be a great boon. Even if cold water changed her, surely hot water wouldn't be too hard to find as well. Nodding, she stepped over to the woman and accepted the gift. After looking at the small silver amulet for a moment she looked up at the smiling woman.

"So, what now," she asked. "If I wear it, Oyagi will probably steal it. I can't leave it in my pack for the same reason."

The woman's smile turned into a smirk as she gestured for Ranma to turn around. Taking the amulet back from the redhead, she proceeded to braid her hair into a pigtail. At the base of the pigtail, she wove the amulet into the hair, concealing it, before braiding the remainder. Then, before the girl could react, she murmured a quick spell, sending the redhead into a deep sleep.

As the redhead slipped into the enchanted slumber she her the woman's voice, "Don't worry, Kiddo. You won't remember this until its time..."

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Flashes of light spark in the darkness followed by distant thunder, a whimper comes from a nearby form.

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The morning was split with a cry of shock as Ranma was awakened by a bucket of cold water. The tingling fire of the change accompanied the shock of the water and wiped away any thoughts of sleep. She bolted upright and caught sight of Genma standing over her, frowning.

"What did ya do THAT for, ya old fool!" she snarled at the large figure in a white gi. Her leg blurred as it swept out and knocked the man off his feet before he could respond. An instant later, a well placed kick with both her feet sent the overweight man rolling out of the small shack.

"You run away for a week, leaving me here alone, and ya got the nerve to SPLASH me first thing! DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG I HAD TO WAIT TO CHANGE BACK, OYAGI?" Ranma yelled as she struggled out of the lower half of her gi. It no longer fit her smaller frame.

"It's time," Genma gasped, hauling himself back to his feet, "time to resume your training, you lazy boy, so stop whining like a girl!"

Ranma stepped out of the hut and filled the bucket, again, from the rain barrel as Genma muttered "When did the boy get so FAST?"

Ranma's eyes narrowed as her left eyebrow twitched. "Tell me something, FATHER. Do I LOOK like a boy right now, hmm?" She sneered at him as he stood there, "No thanks to you I get to spend half of my life as a girl." She started to glow slightly, but quite noticeably in the pre-dawn gloom.

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Genma stared at this display. When did Ranma know how to project a battle aura? He has been holding back! First that, chi blast, now, a battle aura? I'd better distract her - err - HIM, before she - HE - goes any further.

"Fine then. Let's go! There is a village full of women nearby. We can get you some cute little dollies to play with and frilly dresses to flirt with the real men in. A weak little girl like you doesn't need to pretend to be strong..." Genma broke off as he saw Ranma suddenly go pale then he smirked. "What's the matter little girl, can't handle the truth?"

"I... am... a... GUY!" Seconds later a dripping panda bolted for the cover of the woods as a screaming redhead bucket wielding banshee ran after to his furry tail.

The guide looked after the pair and shook his head. "Mister Customer is a fool. It is a bad idea to make Honored Miss angry." He glanced at the pair of blackened footprints where Ranma had stood. Wisps of smoke drifted up from the burnt ground.

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On a rocky cliff, a young man or overgrown boy looks over a valley dotted with pools as the morning sun peeks over the surrounding mountains. "A-At last! I have caught up with you, Ranma Saotome! I will chase you to the ends of the Earth for running out on our man to man fight!"

A rustling in the trees and a high pitched shout draws his attention to the trail behind him. Bursting forth from the tree line, a huge black and white shape charged at him. Startled, he was nearly knocked from the cliff by the beast as it backhanded... err backPAWed him.

"A... A Panda?" he stuttered as he regained his footing. At that moment, a bucket wielding figure burst forth from the trees. Her ill fitting gi top hardly covering her... ahem... and NOT covering her... "Gyaaaah!" His hands flew to his nose in a vain attempt to halt the sudden nosebleed.

"Come back here ya old fool!" the redhead screamed, her face and hair color matched in hue. She bounced over the lost boy's head, clearing the distance effortlessly, almost as if gravity had no real meaning to the vixen with the naturally flame colored hair. "It won't hurt, for long!"

Caught totally off balance and unprepared by the visual impact of the girl, the young man collapsed to his knees, vainly attempting to stop his nosebleed. As he lost the battle, he slumped backwards, and slid over the edge of the cliff. Tumbling down the cliff, he bellowed, "RANMA! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!" After all, everything was that jerk's fault...

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"Come on Pop! Yer scarin em spitless," Ranma yelled into the furry ear of her father after hearing the frightened cries of the Tendo family.

The ear twitched, but he stepped on into the house anyway.

"So father, is this your friend," a sweet sounding voice asked, sending a strange chill of familiarity up Ranma's back.

"Nyuuu - Uhhh - Uhhh!" a man grunted.

"Oh, so this panda just decided to drop in," stated a girl with a sarcastic tone of voice. "Is that it?

Once more, the man grunted negatively.

The panda stopped in front of the family and set Ranma down facing a tall man. She would have bolted right then, but her Pop was holding her firmly by the shoulder. The last thing she wanted was to tear her favorite shirt. Besides, no sense in giving all those perverted boys outside a free peep show. It was bad enough with her soaked silken shirt.

"You wouldn't happen to be," the older man in the dark gray gi began, hope shining in his eyes.

The redhead glanced up before she sullenly replied, "I'm Ranma Saotome." Looking down, she quietly added, "Sorry 'bout this."

------------------------------

A voice whimpers in the darkness, "... make it stop..."

------------------------------

Memories flood faster, blurring together...

A bouquet of roses landed in her hands, "Pigtailed Goddess, I love you! I would date with thee!"

A bandanna clad, umbrella wielding maniac craters the ground. "Ranma! Because of you, I've seen Hell! Prepare to DIE!"

"OH! HO HO HO HO HO! Come to me my darling Ranma!"

"... a cute girl like you..."

"Ranma! You I KILL!"

"Wo an ni Airen!"

"Saotome! Release my Shampoo!"

"Gimmie that pill, ya old Ghoul..."

"Get away from her, ya old lech!"

The flow blurs faster until the final, dreaded moment arrives...

------------------------------

"No," the voice moaned once more. "Please, no. Don't leave me, Akane!" Tears flowed from the tightly shut eyes.

------------------------------

...Saffron's face locked in an expression of shock as the pure white beam of energy engulfed his frozen body and sped on to take the top off Phoenix Mountain.

Once again, the Phoenix flew too near the sun and was burned.

Ranma landed near the small form, cradling it in his hands. "Akane. Please. I - I can't be too late. I just can't!" With care, he slipped the doll into the hot enchanted waters, negating the misused magic. The body of the doll absorbed the waters, transforming it back into the young form of his fiancee.

"Akane, wake up, Akane. I - I l-love you! I can't... NooooOOOOO, AKANE!" Once again the brilliant white light burst forth over the shattered lands of Jusendo, washing everything away with the frigid dampness of cold water...

_-End Prologue-_


	2. Wildfire Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER: I lay no claim to characters from Ranma 1/2, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Ah! My Goddess! Or any other character of any other anime that may, inadvertently or not, be within this story. They are the property of their respective authors. Characters and situations from those series are used without their consent. This is a work of fanfiction for which I do not expect nor will accept compensation.

This fiction is based upon Ranma 1/2, with strong influence from Ah! My Goddess and lesser cameos from the Sailors and possibly Tenchi. Champions of the 'true' fiancé probably won't like my portrayal of Akane or Shampoo. Ukyo gets off a little better, but she doesn't get lucky either. As it is a work of fanfiction, I am not trying to duplicate the canon Manga or Anime characters. Expect some (or a lot) of OOC.

------ Wildfire Chapter 1 ------

Ranma screamed as she bolted upright. Cold water pooled about her as she sat upon her futon. Panicing, she looked around quickly and spotted her fiancée, alive and well, holding a bucket. Akane's face was twisted into what had become an all too familiar mask of anger and loathing.

"A - Akane?" Ranma gasped, shuddering. The water dripping from her crimson bangs hid the tears flowing from her eyes.

"Shut up already, you Jerk! Some of us are trying to sleep. And, keep me out of your sick fantasies, pervert!" With that, Akane spun on her heels and stomped out of the room, followed quickly by the slam of her door further down the hall.

After a moment, Ranma calmed down enough to actually focus on who still stood in the doorway. As Nabiki looked in on the scene, a strange expression was on her face. It vanished behind her customary look of indifference before the redhead was sure what she saw. It almost looked like concern. Had it been on anyone else's face, Ranma might have believed it.

"So, Ranma," Nabiki drawled. "Want tell me what's got you crying like...?"

"Like a little girl, Nabiki?" Ranma finished when the middle Tendo hesitated.

"Well, I wasn't going to say that, but that is close enough," the middle Tendo admitted.

"Go away," the wet girl huffed. "I don't wanna talk about it. I've got enoughof a headache as it is."

Nabiki shook her head as she replied. "I don't think so Ranma. That excuse got old weeks ago, so you had better just tell me what is going on."

"I said, I don't wanna talk about it!" Ranma snapped. "You would just sell whatever I said off for a quick handful of yen," Ranma growled at the middle Tendo daughter. "That includes taking whatever I might say and twisting it around to screw up my life further. No, thank you. I don't believe I have anything to talk to you about."

"Moi? What ever gave you ideas like that?" Nabiki countered with mock hurt.

Ranma simply glared at her from under her bangs.

"Okay, Ranma, let me put it another way. If I don't get the full story of why you are waking up the house at all hours of the night screaming, then I'll just have to release other copies of this tape to a certain group of people." Nabiki held up a micro cassette recorder and hit the play button.

From the small speaker came the unmistakable sound of Ranma screaming for Akane and proclaiming his love. Of course, that was interrupted by Akane and her tantrum and followed by the girl-cursed boy's quiet sobbing. Ranma winced a little at the thought of that their fathers would do with some of that, and what her mother would do with a different part. But then again, she was certain Mister Tendo had heard it all already. The dream didn't come every night, but it was happening more frequently. So, too, were these damn headaches. It was often enough for everyone in the house to have heard it. Still, there were others who might seek to take advantage of it.

"Come, come, Ranma! Out with it. It's been over three months since you returned from China. You must not have told m... us the whole story of what happened if it still has you this spooked. What was that about Akane and being too late? Too late for what?" Nabiki pressed.

"All right, already. Sheesh! You ain't gonna let this go, are ya?" When Nabiki shook her head, Ranma sighed, then said, "Okay. Fine. I gotta talk about this anyway, and it may as well be to you."

"Gee," Nabiki drawled, "you really know how to make a girl wanted, Ranma."

"Ha. Ha. It is to laugh," the redhead said, her voice heavy with sarcasm.

"So," Nabiki said as she stepped into the room and crossed her arms. "Talk."

"I said I needed to talk. Just - just not NOW, Nabiki," Ranma sighed and winced as she rubbed her temples. "After school tomorrow. Tell me where and when we can meet privately to talk, and after I eat, I'll be there."

"It's always food with you, isn't it Ranma," Nabiki teased.

"Just go! I've gotta clean up this mess before I can go back to sleep, no thanks to Akane," the younger girl complained. She stood and retrieved a mop and bucket from her closet.

Raising an eyebrow, Nabiki paused until Ranma made shooing gestures and then closed the door to the guest room.

------------------------------

After putting away the cleaning gear, Ranma gathered all her soaked clothes and walked them down to the laundry room. She didn't want to leave them for Kasumi to carry down. The elder Tendo was the only person in either of the two families to treat her like a person, instead of a thing. A thing to marry off to a friend's daughter. A thing to behold with disgust thanks to a curse. A thing to make money off of by exploitation. A thing to sell off for food, or shelter, or in exchange for freedom. A thing to place on a pedestal of 'manliness,' whtever that was supposed to mean. A thing to own. A prize. A possession. But never a person. Never a person with her own feelings, her own dreams.

And when, oh, WHEN had she started to think of herself - that way? As a girl. She was a gi - a Guy! She can't be a g-girl. She HAS to be a guy. But, without Akane, she has no reason to try to force it away. Wiping more tears from her face, she muttered, "Guys DON'T cry." Ranma quietly returned to her room. It was her room. The only room she could remember having. Since the failed wedding, it had been all hers. Genma, her 'father,' moved back in with her mother. Nodoka, whom she hardly knew and, thanks to the curse, would likely never know as more than a distant acquaintance.

Nodoka couldn't seem to forgive her for the curse. Sure, she did void the seppuku contract, and she was pleasant enough, whenever Ranma was a guy. But, if ever she saw Ranma as a girl anymore, she immediately tried to get her to change. Or, if that wasn't possible, she became very distant and cold. Nothing at all like the kind, if eccentric, woman that Ranma got to know as 'Ranko Tendo.' Nodoka remained unyielding in her position that Ranma be a 'man among men,' whatever that meant, and 'manly.' She wasn't manly anymore when in her girl form, and it was getting harder each day to keep up the act. She could hardly be a man among men if she was a young teenaged girl most of the time.

That had to be the worst part. Ever since she and Genma had first visited Jusenkyo, she hadn't grown. She was just as tall and looked almost exactly as she had nearly two years ago - in either form. As a 'man' she looked like a sixteen-year-old boy. That was hardly what one could call 'manly.' As a girl, well, that term said it all. She was a girl. Not a woman. Just a cute, short, girl who looked no older than fourteen or fifteen. A very well developed fifteen, but fifteen nonetheless. Technically, she was eighteen now. Physically, though, why wasn't she growing? Ryoga, Shampoo and Mousse all had curses, but all of them were obviously older. She had no explanation, and it was starting to become obvious.

On top of it all, lately, she had begun suffering intense migraines if she stayed male too long. The headaches mostly went away whenever she changed back... changed back? Oh, Kami-sama! Was she truly thinking her girl form to be her true self? She sat in the corner and drew her legs up to her chest and sat there, quietly sobbing.

------------------------------

"Ranma! Get up! We're gonna be late!" Akane shouted from the hall before heading to the bathroom. Several minutes later, as she hurried past the door again, she called, "You idiot! Get UP!"

Hearing no reply, she grinned and hefted the weapon she had prepared. Her battle cry cut through the cold morning air, "Ranma-no-BAKA!" Her weapon, a bucket of ice water. Her target... Her target wasn't playing by the rules of the morning 'game.' Her target was missing in action and absent without leave.

Water and chunks of ice spread across the empty wood floor as Akane stared into the guest room. 'Where? Where is he?' she thought. His futon, neatly rolled and tied, rested propped against the closet door. The window was closed, although the shutters were wide open, allowing the bright morning sun to stream in.

"Oh! Akane..."

"Waaaah!" she shrieked and spun around. "Kasumi! Don"t DO that!" she said, her face heating with her flush of ... embarrasment. Taking a few deep breaths she wondered how Kasumi had crept up on her like that.

"Do what, Akane?" Kasumi asked as she tilted her head and smiled pleasantly.

Akane sputtered for a moment before responding. "N-never mind, sis. Did you want me for something?"

"Your breakfast is ready and I have your bento in the kitchen. Ranma left for school early today. He said he had something he had to take care of before class started, and asked that I let you know."

"W-what do I care what that pervert does?" Akane sputtered, denying her anger that he had left without her.

"Really, Akane," Kasumi sounded disappointed, before she gasped, "OH, MY! What happened in there?" Kasumi gazed beyond her younger sister and then glanced to the fire bucket in Akane's hands. "Akane, you really should stop throwing water around the house. Those buckets are there for emergencies, not for washing the guest room floor."

"O-okay, Kasumi," Akane replied meekly, her head ducked to hide her growing anger. If Ranma had been there and taken his punishment like a man, then Kasumi wouldn't have scolded her like that. That insensitive jerk! Her knuckles popped as she clutched the handle on the bucket.

"Good," Kasumi nodded, accepting Akane's statement as an apology. "Your breakfast is ready for you. Hurry on now, you don't want to be late for school, especially this close to finals."

"Tkank you," came the nearly growled reply.

As Akane stomped off downstairs, Kasumi gathered up the cleaning supplies, conveniently left by Ranma, and mopped up the water in the guest room. "Such a considerate boy," She hummed.

------------------------------

"That, that, JERK!" Akane raged as she stormed to school. "When I get my hands on that idiot...Ooooh! Just you wait, Ranma!"

"What violent girl want with Airen?" Shampoo's sing-song voice cut into Akane's tirade.

"NOTHING!" Akane shouted, face flushed with her anger. "That pervert can dry up and DIE for all I care. How DARE he leave me at home."

"Airen leave kitchen wrecker at home?" Shampoo giggled. "He finally come to senses, yes? Where Airen now?"

"As if you didn't know," the youngest Tendo growled. "He probably hid at your restaurant and let you hang all over him, the pervert."

"Shampoo not see Airen today." The Purple haired Amazon pouted cutely as Akane glared at her. Suddenly her face brightened, "Bai, Bai, violent girl. Shampoo go find Airen and show him who best!" with that, the Amazon leapt to her bike and sped away.

"FINE! You can Have him!" She bellowed after the receding Amazon. "Oh my GOD! I'm going be late!" Akane gasped, then borrowed a phrase, "RANMA! This is all YOUR FAULT!"

An elderly woman tried to ignore the antics of the temperamental teen and sighed as she blessed the walkway to her house, splashing water across the concrete. Something was missing... she looked around for a moment, then shrugged and went back to her morning ritual.

------------------------------

For Ranma, this day of school was atypical. He was actually early to class. The fact that he was there, and not sleeping already was drawing curious looks from the class. This alone caused several of the girls to talk. Whispers of "Where is Akane?" and "...wonder if he's free now" continued until Ukyo arrived.

Ukyo stopped short in the door when she saw 'her Ranchan' sitting at his desk reading a book. A little shocked, and very curious, she walked over to his desk. Ranma glanced up as she approached, blinked and turned back to his book.

"Ranchan," the okonomiyaki chef asked, "you feeling okay, sugar?"

"Yeah, Ukyo-san, why wouldn't I be?" Ranma replied calmly.

Ukyo glanced to Akane's empty seat. "Did Akane..."

"No, Ukyo-san. Akane-san didn't." Ranma interrupted. "I had some business to take care of before school, so I got here early. That is all." His eyes continued to roam steadily down the pages of his book.

Ukyo nodded and bit her lip. She stood over Ranma for a few minutes, watching him read. After shuffling her feet a few times, she ventured another question. "What are you reading?"

Ranma lifted the book, allowing her to see the title, without looking at her.

"Ranma, why are you trying to read a book written in Chinese?" Ukyo asked after studying the book for a moment.

Snorting, Ranma replied dryly. "Because I want to, because I can, because it's better than sitting here staring out the window. Is there something wrong with that?"

"N-no," she stammered, "of course not. I'm sorry."

"Feh! Don't worry about it." He responded with an airy wave of his hand as he lowered the book and resumed reading.

Another minute passed as the other students watched in silence. "So, "she finally asked, "what is it about?"

Ranma set the book down with a sigh and looked up at her. He looked terrible. His eyes were bloodshot and puffy. "Sun Tzu: The Art of War. Now, do you mind? I've only got a few more minutes until either class starts, or Akane-san comes in. I'd like to get some more reading done."

Ukyo shook her head numbly and settled into her seat. She brooded for a time. Thoughts flew around her head as she tried to think of how to get Ranma to forgive her for her involvement in destroying his wedding. She sighed as she sat at her desk. "Anything would be better than this... formal indifference," she muttered.

Her eyes widened as she sat bolt upright in her chair. Turning, she stared at the pig-tailed martial artist. Ranma was reading a book. RANMA was reading a book - in Chinese?! She settled back into her chair as she watched her sometimes fiancé, sometimes friend with a worried expression. She decided to keep an eye on him; he was acting stranger than ever today.

------------------------------

Akane, once again accosted outside the school gates by one Tatewaki Kuno, was late as usual. Even the nearing midterm exams hadn't stopped the idiot from trying to woo her. If anything, it made him even more persistent. He was no longer an upperclassman. As a result of repeated stays in the nurses office, the elder Kuno was forced to repeat his senior term. At least, that was the excuse given for his continued presence at Furinken this year. Had Ranma not clobbered him as often as he had, Kuno might have graduated with Nabiki. Her glare at Ranma promised pain when she could get away with it. Her thoughts were following a convoluted thread that had become all too common in the recent months. 'Look at him sitting there near Ukyo! He must have run off to her this morning, the Jerk! It's not like I asked to have him as my iinazuke. Does he have to hang all over those other girls? Pervert! He's MY fiancé. He was promised to MY family - to ME.' She glared again at him as she grabbed her bucket and stepped into the hall.

------------------------------

The class was shocked repeatedly throughout the day. Ranma was attentive, and asked intelligent questions. He ignored Akane completely, which naturally made her loose her temper, and get sent to the hall repeatedly. Miss Hinako didn't have any excuse to drain Ranma, so the Ki Vampire stayed in her child form throughout most of her class, except for the brief time following another outburst from Akane.

When the lunch period was announced, Ranma quickly leapt out the window to avoid dealing with the girls. This no longer was such an impressive feat as it once was, nor as successfully used. The class rooms for those in the senior term were on the first floor.

All morning, he had been feeling the anger that Akane kept under poor control. At least Ukyo wasn't coming onto him, a welcome change. Perhaps a month of the cold shoulder had finally clued her in. But, the rest of the girls in class were eyeing him strangely. Besides, his head had started to scream at him over an hour ago. 'Blasted migraine,' he thought. 'Hopefully, some time spent away from the confines of the classroom will help. I really didn't want to change back... change TO... my girl form right now.'

After a brief conversation with one of Nabiki's factors, who gave him directions to the meeting place, Ranma found a tree to rest under for the lunch break. Not long afterwards, the ringing of a bike bell jerked him awake. It was either that or the tire planted firmly in his stomach.

"Nihao, Ranma!" the purple haired warrior bubbled, "Shampoo bring Airen too, too, good Ramen. Ranma hungry, yes?"

"Shampoo," the boy growled out slowly, "Get. Off. Me!"

"Ai Ya! What Airen do under Shampoo bike?" she giggled as she hopped off.

"As if you didn't know!" he muttered, then switched to slightly accented Mandarin, "Xian Pu, this is the very last time I am going to tell you this..." Shampoo's squeal of delight interrupted him, "Are you listening to me?"

"Husband! When did you learn Mandarin?" she asked in the same language. "Oh! Now you can tell Xian Pu that you love her, properly!" She darted up and glomped onto the black haired boy, snuggling affectionately.

"Nope, you aren't listening." Ranma sighed, switching back to Japanese. "Why me? Why can't I have one lousy day without this crap?"

"Saotome, you fiend! Release my Shampoo!" Mu Tsu's shout carried over the entire school yard as he leapt at them from the trees. Sunlight glinted from the blind boy's glasses perched loosely atop his head, precisely where they did the myoptic young man the least amount of good.

"Well," Ranma replied as he and Xian Pu leapt apart, "one outta three ain't bad bird-brain! I ain't a fiend, and I wasn't the one doing the holding. At least ya got my name right."

------------------------------

Mu Tsu whirled upon landing. "DIE, Ranma," he shouted as several weapons attched to chains hurled from the hidden weapons master in a patern that bracketed his target. The outer blurs dodged rapidly away from his strikes as the blades and mace slammed into the middle blur with metallic clanks.

He quivered in joy as his beloved graced him with the dulcet tones of her loving affection. "STUPID MOUSE! You kill Shampoo's bike!"

The other blur snorted, "Good riddance, too!"

His face twisted with anger as he spun to face the voice of his target. "Saotome," he growled, "you won't get away with that! How dare you hide behind Xian Pu's bike!"

"So, who's hiding?"

Before he could respond, pain exploded at the back of his head as Xian Pu once again vented her misplaced anger upon him.

------------------------------

Across the school yard, the doors to the main building flew open as Akane stormed out, seeking a certain black haired boy. She was not letting go of her anger at Ranma for ignoring her all morning, nor for not being there to interrupt her fight with Kuno, thus making her late. Looking around, she saw several of the students looking off to a corner of the school yard. 'Gotta be Ranma,' she thought, 'he is always at the center of attention, the Jerk!'

'How dare he come into my life and take that away from me?' Akane caught sight of her quarry. 'Sure enough, there he is,' she thought, 'hanging all over that purple haired floozy.'

"How dare he!" she seethed as her vision took on a red tint that had become increasingly more familiar over that last few months. "That idiot is my fiancé. He can't get rid of me THAT easy." A few of the girls around her murmured their support. But, that number had fallen over the last year. 'I am supposed to be the popular one,' she thought, 'not HIM.'

"Just you wait, Ranma!" she growled while stomping in their direction. She would make him pay, once again, for embarrassing her... err insulting her honor by hanging out with another girl.

------------------------------

Atop the school tower, a figure watched the events unfolding below. Although the sun was shining, the hooded cloak obscured its features almost completely, leaving only the mouth visible from the face. That mouth was twisted into a sly smirk.

"Soon dear brother," the figure whispered, "soon you shall be free once more. Every day, I feel the bonds of your prison weaken. Once you are free, we will take back what is ours. The world will fall to their knees and bow to Zetsubo and Gekido Hagesii."

The figure fell silent and leaned forward in anticipation as it watched Akane approach the battle going on between Ranma, Mouse and Shampoo. "Ahh, Akane! The ever faithful temper tantrum to the rescue. I knew I could count upon your assistance in this. Truly, I don't know if it is more fun spurring you on from the inside," it mused, "or watching you perform from the outside."

"You GO, girl!" the figure chortles before its head whips about, "I sense a presence..." A sudden breeze whipped around the figure, flattening the cloak around the now obviously very female body. A heavy strand of auburn hair slipped from the hood as the figure look out beyond the school gates. There, on the street below, a small girl dressed in white trimmed with red approached. A small hammer was strapped across her back. She seemed to be studying some device in her hands as she swept it back and forth in front of her.

"Damn," she cursed as she dropped deeper into the shadow of the tower. "Nosy little brat."

She briefly hesitated, torn between watching the chaos unfolding below and keeping an eye on the approaching girl. A yell drew her attention back to the drama in the school yard. "Well," she said with a smirk as the pigtailed youth tumbled across the school yard into the path of the delusional samurai, "there is no sense in revealing my involvement here just yet. Where there is one Norn, the others are soon to follow. Besides, it looks like Akane-chan is doing fine without me." With a giggle, the woman vanished into the shadows.

------------------------------

Below, Ranma was becoming more frustrated with each passing moment as he dodged the various attackers. The blind boy, who wanted him dead, was not listening to him. The Amazon fiancée wanna-be, who wanted to cuddle, was not listening to him. Akane, who wanted to smack him because the Amazon wanted to cuddle, was not listening to him. Kuno, who also wanted to kill him or date him, was running towards them, and he NEVER listened to him. The only one missing now was Ryoga. He probably got lost on his way to being late for this fight.

He suddenly gasped in agony and clutched his head as he dodged another of Mousse's chains. The surge of pain in his head brought tears to the stalwart boys eyes. "Noooo! Not NOW," he gasped, as he stumbled to the side. The watering of his eyes and the pain in his head reduced his field of vision drastically. Sensing, rather than seeing the attack, he turned just in time for Akane's mallet to connect. The blow knocked him tumbling, directly into the path of the self proclaimed 'Blue Thunder' of Furinken High.

"HA, Foul Sorcerer," the insane Kendoist shouted, "the beauticious Akane has struck a blow for her freedom and that of my goddess of pigtails. It falls to me to finish the deed. Have at you, Spawn of Darkness!"

Dozens of blows began to rain down upon the writhing form of the young martial artist. Kuno's skill with the bokken turned the practice weapon into something a bit more lethal. Cuts began to appear all over Ranma as the crazed kendoist slashed at his dazed foe. The girl-cursed boy staggered to his feet as he attempted to dodge the flurry of blows aimed at him. A final strike sliced off the boy's pigtail. The bundle of hair dropped to the ground with a heavy thud, as a small piece of silvery metal bounced out. Ranma fell to the ground once more clutching his head as a scream of agony erupted from him. He focused all his attention upon containing the agony that roared through his head. A red haze seemed to settle over his gaze as the blood pounded in his ears. In what seemed an eternity to the youth, he fought the waves of pain to a manageable level, and focused once more upon his soul of ice technique.

Kuno, posing over Ranma's twitching body swung his bokken about in wild arcs as he proclaimed his victory. "Ah-Ha! At LAST! The vengeance of Heaven is slow but... erk!"

Kuno's speech was interrupted by a case of foot-in-mouth disease, Ranma's foot to be exact. As Kuno stood there with frost rimmed footprints plastered across his face and lining the rest of his body, Ranma flipped to his feet. He snatched up the metal amulet without really knowing why, and started walking toward where Shampoo and Akane were arguing, an ice blue aura flickered about him. He glanced down briefly as he passed another unconscious figure. Mousse, having met the business end of Shampoo's bonbori once too often, lay sprawled on the ground.

Ignoring the incapacitated young man, Ranma glided toward the two arguing teenagers. Their argument cut off abruptly as they both shivered from the sudden chill his presence. His powerful and icy aura surged around him as he stalked up to to face them

"That is enough!" Ranma said coldly. Both girls flinched at the tone, but chose to ignore the warning.

"Airen!" Shampoo squealed and bounced around to face Ranma. Whatever she was going to say was interrupted as she caught sight of her 'Airen.' Her eyes widened as she pointed to his face.

"Husband? Wh - what happened to your face?" She stared at the strange, flickering marks or tattooes that bracketed his face. The marks were glowed a dim crimson hue, discernable even through the strong blue aura he was radiating.

Akane switched from yelling verbal abuse at Shampoo, to hurling insults at Ranma. Whatever she may have expected as a reaction, what she received was a literal cold shoulder as Ranma turned and focused on his Amazon 'wife'.

"Xian Pu. Leave. Now." He snarled, once again speaking in Mandarin. "You have caused trouble for me for the last time."

"What do you mean, beloved?" the Neichezu warrior asked, perplexed.

"Hey!" Akane shouted. "Stop ignoring me, you jerk!" her voice finally cut into the Ranma's consciousness.

Without looking at her, Ranma growled out, "I will deal with you next, Tendo. Wait your turn." Switching back to Mandarin, he continued, "Xian Pu. This is your last chance to leave by your own free will." He cracked his knuckles, and gave a dark smile. "I am not, nor ever will be your husband. I do not love you. You have pushed me to the point of turning any feelings of friendship I may have had into hatred. We aren't in China so your laws have no sway here. Unless you truly wish your own laws applied to you, Gaijin, you will listen to what I say. For the last time. Go. Away."

Shocked beyond measure, Shampoo could only gape at the young man as he returned her gaze with eyes as cold as chips of blue ice. Tears blurred her vision as she fought to hold in the sobs growing from deep within. The Saotome youth stood his ground, for once not caving in to the mournful, tear filled eyes and the quivering lips. With a muffled cry of anguish, Shampoo grabbed the remains of her bike, and ran away.

Somehow, the soul of ice dulled the pain roaring though his head. Fortunately, it also dulled his emotions, or he never would have been able to do that to Shampoo. Unfortunately, it also dulled his danger sense. Ranma's expression remained cold as he toward Akane, only to hear one final angry outburst from the Tendo Heir.

"Ranma-no-Baka!" Akane screamed. Her foot blurred around in a horizontal arc as she put every ounce of effort into the spinning kick. Her blow slammed into the boy, knocking him through the walls bordering the school yard, across the street and through the wall beyond. "Ha! That'll show that idiot he can't ignore me like that." Finally mollified that she had been able to deliver the deserved punishment to her fiance, she turned and stalked back to class as the school bell sonded.

In the yard, Kuno stood like a statue, bokken raised, unconscious. Had he been conscious, he would have seen a young girl with long black hair look through the hole in the school wall, and stare at him through odd glasses. Had he been conscious, his twitching eye might have been mistaken for a wink. Had he been conscious.

------------------------------

Across the city, in another ward of Tokyo, a girl frowned at her computer as a marker dot faded almost as quickly as it had appeared. Playing back the data confirmed it was near where other minor disturbances had happened in the past. But, none of the others had ever been as powerful as this one. Unfortunately, the readings were too jumbled to make much sense of who or what caused them, so she saveed them for later analysis. Perhaps, if it showed up again, she could compare the two readings and learn more.

The girl made a mental note to inform her friends at their next meeting. Nerima was a bit further than most of their problems occurred, but better be safe than sorry. If more incidents of this magnatude occurred, they may have to check it out.

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Skuld, Norn Goddess of the Future (Second Class, Limited), hurried down the sidewalk, intent upon the readout of her SkuldSkan Mark II (patent pending) super-bug tracer. The Mark I SkuldSkan had led her on a not so merry chase throughout Japan and China, before finally shorting out. It may have had something to do with the mountaintop she was near exploding, or perhaps the death and rebirth of that demi-god Saffron (Fourth Class, Limited), who had been defeated by some mortal in the area. Anyhow, the Mark II had several improvements over the old model, including a better resolution in its scans. Now, instead of kilometers, she could narrow down a super-bug trace to a few dozen meters.

How two strong concentrations of system bugs had managed to last for so long undetected was a mystery that she intended to discover. As with all bugs, they tended to perpetuate if left to their own devices. Usually, this occurred at incredible rates and with drastic and obvious results. These two were different. They seemed to be growing very slowly for bugs. This made them considerably harder to track as the effect upon the system was not as drastic. The degradation of system performance and stability was far more gradual than a normal bug. This had allowed them to go mostly unnoticed for far too long.

One of the two concentrations she was tracking, the Beta, had been around for what she estimated to be eighteen Midgard years. That alone was amazing. But, that was a pittance - only a blink in the passage of time for her current prey, that which she called the Alpha Bug. The Alpha was not as... elusive... as the concentration that had led her on her merry chase with the Mark I, but seemed to be much more firmly entrenched in the system. Not surprising for a bug that could be thousands of years old. It could even be older than her prior incarnation. Although it appeared to have been dormant for most of that time, it had become very active over the last few years, with its activities peaking within the last 3 months. It was past time to deal with it.

She looked up again, and found her way obstructed by the closed gates of a high school. A glance at the SkuldSkan indicated her quarry was either moving extremely fast, or...

"Hmm. Well, it must be very close. It should not be difficult to locate now," she murmured, looking around. "Furinken High School. Where have I seen that name before?"

She thought on that for a few moments, but nothing came ot mind. She shrugged and resumed following the erratically moving blip on the screen. It was moving in spirals and loops and making extremely sharp direction changes. As she closed the distance, she began picking up a few other minor bugs scattered about the larger concentration. They seemed to be... dancing.

She became aware of a strange feeling. 'That's funny,' she thought, 'something else is there. Something almost familiar...' For a moment, she thought she saw something atop the school building. However, as the odd feeling faded, the sounds of combat beyond the wall surrounding the school drew her attention.

Skuld heard several yells and shouts and even a curse about a spawn of darkness. That reclaimed the young Norn's attention. "A hellspawn? Surely not," she said. "one of those things would have set off alarms throughout the system and alerted the Battle Angels." She glanced about to ensure no one was in the area and floated up briefly to the top of the wall. The trees inside the school yard obscured her view. It was obvious that a fight was going on, however, if that scream of agony was any indication. Further down the fence line, she spotted a place where there were not any trees. She would be able to see into the school yard there.

As she settled back down, her scanner suddenly lit up. It had a solid lock on the Alpha! It was over there, where the mortals were fighting. A strange tingle washed over her as the sounds of combat ceased with another pained cry. She hurried forward, hopping up here and there, trying to get a look. Then, the wall in front of her exploded after a girl screamed something about an idiotic wild horse. A red blur flew through the rubble and crashed through the wall bordering the apartment homes on the other side of the street.

Skuld hurried up to the shattered wall, slipped on her special lenses, and looked into the school yard. Her eyes widened at the dark red aura, plainly visible even without the special glasses, being radiated by the short haired high school girl stalking back towards the school building. Looking closer, Skuld was still unable to locate any bugs near her, but that massive unfocused aura could be interfering. She'd have to get back to her later. Most mortals couldn't produce that much life energy without outside influence. She decided it would be a good idea to run a scan of the entire school later, just to be safe. That aura looked almost demonic.

Looking toward the motionless young man in the Kendo gear, Skuld frowned at the complex patterns and moved closer for a better look. 'Nope, no bugs,' she thought before blinking the focus a little tighter. 'Aahh, wait. There it is. Strange, this one is almost two years old! No, he's not the Alpha, nor is he the Beta, but he has certainly been in contact with one or the other. He - he's not normal either.' She frowned as she readied her tool, he seemed to be WINKING at her. A moment later, the Mark II started to beep rapidly, remininding her that it had a lock on her true quarry. She slung her discharged hammer and focused once more upon tracking down the Alpha.

"Where is it?" she snapped as she looked back to her scanner. "That way!" Skuld turning to look at the hole in the stone fence, ten meters away. She hurried across the back street to the other shattered wall. Beyond, lying face down upon the steps in the shallow end of a swimming pool was a girl, about her size, wearing loose black pants and a shredded red silk shirt. The bug had assumed human form! The obviously female Alpha, who was bleeding from several nasty slashes, groaned and started to pull itself the remainder of the way out of the pool.

"OH, NO YOU DON'T!" Skuld cried out as she whipped out her debugging hammer again. She charged the Alpha and brought her tool crashing down upon the bug so cleverly disguised as a red headed girl.

The hammer connected with the target with a thunderous crack and a blinding flash of light. Skuld found herself flying through the air from the shockwave alone. Recovering her balance, she halted her unexpected flight and settled quickly to the ground to clear her eyes.

"HA! I'm the best!" she exclaimed smugly, even as she was blinking her eyes to clear them. Once her vision came back enough to see where she was going, Skuld hopped into the air and drifted back into the yard.

"Finally! I finally got you - you... wha-? B-b-but, that's impossible!" There, lying in a crater of pulverized tile, was the redhead with the waist length hair. No bug had ever resisted being blasted into nothingness by her debugging hammer. Well, ok, avoided yes, but RESISTED?

Skuld cautiously moved over to the bug, crouched down and rolled it onto its back. This revealed its face for the first time to the young goddess. All color drained away from her face as she stared at the unconscious red head in shock. A faint groan escaped from the battered girl as a familiar shaped silver amulet fell from her slack grasp.

"Oh, Father! What have I done?" the young goddess moaned. Reaching down with both hands, Skuld placed her index fingers upon the girl's forehead, and her thumbs below each of the closed eyes. She chanted her best healing spell. A faint tingle spread up her fingers, which was answered by a stronger tingle on her own face, but not much else happened. 'At least she is still alive,' Skuld thought, 'for now.' Tears started to course down the young Norn's face.

"I-I didn't know," she cried. "Belldandy! She'll know what to do. She's much better at healing and stuff. Just you wait right here. She'll be able to help, I just know it!" She turned, jumped into the pool, and vanished into it.

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Shortly after the goddess disappeared into the pool, Ranma's eyes cracked open. She looked around with bloodshot eyes, looking for whoever had malleted her. For the first time in years, her thoughts were clear. She couldn't stay in this situation. Enough was enough. Now the tomboy was following and pounding her when she was down already. Her honor was more than satisfied. She would no longer put up with the abusive, spoiled, child, who was supposed to be her iinazuke.

The situation was out of control. She had at one time planned on a training trip to Okiyama. There, she had read, a shrine existed that was was rumored to have a demon held captive. Perhaps the monks who could hold a demon would know about curses as well. Now, perhaps the monks could help with other things, such as a new start.

Ranma pulled herself to her feet and limped stiffly back toward the school. By the time she crossed the street, most of the pain and stiffness had been worked out. She stopped and stared through the ruined fence at the immobile Tatewaki Kuno. He still stood, bokken raised high, facing the street. She shook her head and absently brushed a long strand of crimson hair from her face by hooking it behind an ear. Finally, she turned and began walking down the street toward the shopping district. Her flowing knee length hair billowed behind her in the gentle breeze of her passage.

Behind her, in the shallow water of the damaged pool, a silvery amulet lay forgotten as it glinted with the reflected light of the midday sun.

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Ukyo looked up as Akane walked back into the classroom. The girl had the smug look on her face she always got after pounding on Ranchan. She waited a few minutes for Ranma to come strolling in like he always does. It quickly became obvious to her, after the bell signaling the start of the study hall rang, that he would not be doing so today. She leaned over and whispered to Akane, "Where is Ranma?"

Akane turned to her, her face flushing, and bit out each word through gritted teeth, "I don't know and could not care less where that womanizing pervert is. Why don't you ask Shampoo? I caught him flirting with her."

"So, you pounded him, is that it sugar?"

"The Jerk deserved it for ignoring me."

"You ever stop to think that if you were a little nicer to him," Ukyo asked, "he might be nicer to you?"

"Don't you even try to make it my fault." Akane growled. "If Ranma wasn't such a jerk, I would be nicer to him!"

"Sure, princess, whatever you say." Ukyo sneered.

"Hmph." Akane snorted, "Look at you. You're nice to him all the time, and how has he been treating you? Like crap, that's how!"

Ukyo stared at the fuming Tendo girl, then began shaking her head. "No, Akane. You are wrong. We are the ones who have treated him badly, sugar, and unless you wise up, you are going to lose him."

Ukyo then stood and walked out of the class. As the door closed behing her, she heard Akane shout, "I never WANTED him in the first place!"

Shaking from her own anger, Ukyo had to think hard about not going back and giving that girl a beating she'd never forget. But, Ranma would probably appreciate that as much as he appreciated her actions at the wedding. She decided the best thing to do was to go find him and make sure, as a friend should, that he was okay.

It wasn't too hard to locate where the fight had taken place. Even now, Kuno stood in place, a few pigeons perched atop his bokken. As she neared the statuesque older boy, the pigeons took to wing. He sighed and lowered his bokken.

Ukyo opened her mouth to speak, but stopped when she heard him say softly, "Verily, Heaven smiles upon the Blue Thunder this day." After a deep sigh, he continued, "for I have at last seen my goddess freed. Such a fiery beauty is she. It pains me so, to see her unhappy. I pray she will forgive me my transgressions," He sighed as he dropped his head, "for I can not forgive myself."

Ukyo gaped at him for a moment. He turned around to head back to school, and stopped. An expression of shock washed away the tired sadness on his face, and was itself quickly replaced with his usual haughty demeanor.

"Ha, but it is the chef Kuonji. What, pray tell, might the Blue Thunder do for thee?"

"K-Kuno?"

"You will address me as Sempai, or as the Blue Thunder."

"Whatever, sugar, what was that about Ra... erm... your pigtailed goddess?"

"Where?" Kuno queried, looking around, "Hast thou seen her? Direct me at once to where she may be!"

"Oh, no you don't, Kuno! I heard you just now," Ukyo stated. "You know something, and I want to hear it is, especially if it deals with my Ranchan!"

"I know not of what you speak," he replied, eyes narrowing. "If thou dost not know of the whereabouts of my pigtailed goddess, then bother me not with questions of that foul sorcerer Saotome! He was dealt a just blow by the beauticious Akane and sent hither through the wall. Perhaps he may be found beyond. But I warn thee..."

"Thanks, Kuno-sempai!" Ukyo interrupted as she ran from the school yard.

Kuno looked after her, a small smile crossed his features, before he steeled his gaze once more into its customary smirk, and returned to the school.

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Nabiki was not very happy with her younger sister. Her fight with Ranma at lunch had driven the boy off. According to her 'sources', he had not returned after lunch. Also, he had not been seen at any of his usual hangouts, nor at home. This was not usual for him at all. Of course, he had been acting strange all day. Ukyo had disappeared after lunch as well, so it seemed possible that they had run off together somewhere. Reports on the battle, and what she herself had seen of the aftermath made it likely that Ranma had been injured. Checking the nearby clinics and hospitals had turned up nothing. It was as if he had disappeared. She finally ran into Ukyo and joined her in the search, but no trace of the young man was found. Ukyo seemed sincerely worried about him. As far as Nabiki was concerned, Ukyo deserved Ranma more than Akane did, not that she would tell either girl that.

"He better not keep me waiting long," she muttered to herself. Securing this private room at the library was easy, but there was another group scheduled after them.

A few minutes later, Ranma strode into the room. Nabiki's eyes widened slightly in shock. The girl-cursed boy had apparently been splashed sometime and had not bothered to reverse the curse. Considering her dry clothes, it must have been several hours prior. She set down a large pack just inside the doorway and turned to face Nabiki.

"Surprised? Thought it was time for a new look." The redhead twirled about before she walked over and sat down opposite Nabiki. Instead of her usual short pigtail, her hair was now in a very long ponytail falling far below her waist. "Looks different, ne?"

Nabiki nodded slowly, a thoughtful look on her face. She glanced at the pack and then back to the girl. "Leaving us again, Ranma?"

"Only for a while. Don't worry Nabiki, your favorite source of money won't be gone long." Ranma answered with sarcasm.

"Ranma! How could you..." the middle Tendo began before Ranma interrupted her.

"Don't deny it, Nabiki," the girl said sourly. "That is pretty much all you see me as; a source of quick money. Now, do you want me to tell you what's bothering me about Akane, or not."

'So that's how its is, eh, Saotome?' Nabiki though. 'Believe it or not, Ranma, I do care about what happens to you.' She clicked the record button on the micro-cassette recorder in her pocket before responding. "So, tell me, why now? Why couldn't you talk last night?"

"I was hoping to get a little more privacy, without uninvited guests listening, but I guess that is not going to happen." Ranma glared at the window for a moment before shrugging.

"What are you talking about?" Nabiki asked as she glanced out the window. All she could see was the deepening shadows that signaled the approaching sunset.

"Not important," the smaller girl said, as she waved the matter off. "You may as well put your recorder up here so you get this clear the first time. I don't intend to tell you more than once, and I'm not going to answer any questions I don't choose to. You want to hear this, so just shut up and listen. Got it?"

Annoyed, but not wanting to miss this chance, Nabiki set the little device on the table. "Okay, Ranma. Talk."

For the next twenty minutes, Ranma talked about the events leading up to Jusendo. The Amazon's request for help. The trip back to China. Akane's abduction and the creation of a new spring of drowned girl patterned after her. At last she came to the part directly related to the dream. Akane had been turned into a dried doll, and the only cure was being guarded by Saffron, a self-proclaimed god.

"That all led to the battle with Saffron," Ranma sighed. "During the fight, all I could think about was Akane. It was my fault that Saffron had sent Kima after her. If not for the love I had for her... yes, I can actually say that I loved her... he would not have tried to use her to get to me.

"I fought him, Nabiki. I fought him as I have never fought anyone before, nor since. I could not afford to fight him the way I fought Herb, Taro, Happosai, or any of the others. I could not afford to hold back, or Akane would die.

"For the first time since Jusenkyo, I stopped holding back. It still wasn't enough, Nabiki. Everything I threw at him, he shrugged off or healed almost instantly." Ranma paused, before continuing, "I was afraid I might loose. Me, the 'great' Ranma Saotome, afraid that I would loose... and, if I lost, Akane would die. I couldn't run away to find a new technique or magic potion that would make it all better. I had to win, and I had a limited amount of time in which to do it."

Ranma ducked her head, hiding her face from Nabiki as she stared at her clenched fists. "I was running out of that time. I had to get Akane to the magic water under Jusendo mountain. But, Saffron intended to use that water for something. If I saved Akane, there wouldn't be enough left for him. I wasn't gonna let him stop me. I searched deep inside me for the strength to save Akane. I found that strength... that... power, Nabiki."

When Ranma raised her head, Nabiki was shocked to see the anguish in her face. "I allowed the power that I now hold bottled up inside me to come forth, and I embraced what awoke that fateful day in the Spring of Jusenkyo. Nabiki, you cannot begin to understand what I felt... what I still feel. Now that it is awake, I cannot put it to sleep again. I have tried, but that only made those migraines worse... and, besides, it just isn't right anymore. I accepted the power, so now I have to live with the consequences."

Nabiki nearly had to bite her tongue to avoid asking him to elaborate. Looking at the young boy... no... the young girl in front of her, she could guess what the consequence probably was. Before she could voice her guess, Ranma continued.

"But, back to Saffron. I was out of time. I pulled all the strength, all the power I could hold into that last attack. First, I drew all his fire away, freezing him," Ranma ducked her head again and stared at her hands as she fiddled with them. "Then, I - I KILLED him Nabiki. I... I killed a god. It was all for her. The one I loved with all my heart. I did it for Akane. It does not matter that, since he was a god, the Phoenix King no less, he was reborn almost immediately. What matters is that even if he hadn't been a god, I still would have killed him to save Akane. I see his face in my dreams. I know what he felt at that last instant. Shock and fear."

Ranma looked up into the pale, shocked face of the girl sitting across from him. Her own eyes shimmering. "I was in time, obviously, or Akane would be dead now. But it was a close thing, Nabiki. So, very close. Another minute, perhaps less, and it would have been too late. I held her body in the waters that restored her. I told her I loved her. I begged her not to die and leave me." Ranma hung her head again. Tears flowed freely and dripped onto the table top while the shocked middle Tendo looked on.

"She recovered, but never acknowledged my love. Never told me she cared. Never - never told me she loved me. Not until that stupid wedding. Of course, I guess since I never asked her how she felt, I bear as much blame for what happened next." The young girl sniffed and whispered, "guys don't cry. It ain't manly. But, I'm not exactly a man right now, am I? So screw it."

She drew in a deep, shuddering breath, and continued. "At first, right after we returned from China, things got better between us, as I'm sure you remember. We didn't fight as much. Our parents backed off a bit about the engagement. The other girls pretty much left us alone. I thought it might actually work out."

Ranma laughed bitterly, "but then those bungling idiots sprang that blasted wedding. Ya know something, Nabiki? I was actually ready to go ahead and get married. I was going to do it. I think Akane may have been ready as well, if nothing else, just to get relief from the constant pressure your father and Genma put on us. But then, as I have come to expect from my life here, everything fell to pieces."

Nabiki's eyes narrowed a bit as she heard Ranma refer to her father by his given name.

"What started off as a small quiet wedding, turned into a war zone thanks to unwanted fiancées, loons, idiots, ancient perverts and lost little piggies... please, tell me you know about the pig..." She looked Nabiki in the eyes for a moment before focusing on the table again.

"I can't tell you if you don't know," Ranma said softly. "I swore on my honor not to reveal the truth. Now that honorless pig uses that against me. I refuse to stoop to his level and break my word."

After another long pause, she continued. "You don't know how close I came to loosing control, especially when Kasumi and my mother were nearly hurt. Had that happened... well, I don't like to think about what would have happened. What did happen is that I am not married to Akane. I don't know if I should curse those involved for the lost opportunity, or bless them for preventing what would now be a horrible disaster.

She stared steadily into Nabiki's eyes as she said this. Nabiki couldn't help but flinch under the intense gaze. 'At least Ranma is being reasonable,' Nabiki though, 'unlike how my own sister would be.'

Ranma turned her gaze out the window and continued her narrative. "Since then, everything has gone from bad to worse. I tried very hard to make things work out. But, one sided love is doomed to fail." Ranma looked back at Nabiki. "The girl I came to love has rejected and insulted me at every turn since then. I have not been someone who can sit back and let insults directed at me, deserved or not, go unanswered. Any attempt I made at being nice was returned with suspicion and insults, and I'd throw them right back. If I tried to talk about my feelings, I'd get a mallet, or more insults, or both in return. So, the cycle continued. It is tearing me up, Nabiki. I cannot allow it to continue anymore. I will not allow it to continue any more. My honor is satisfied. I have made every effort I could to salvage the relationship. But, as I said, a relationship of one is not a relationship. Now, it is Akane's job."

Ranma paused for a few moments, swallowing several times as if to clear her throat, while staring out the window at the night sky. The full moon hung low in the sky. She started speaking once more, in a softer tone. "You wanted to know about the dream though, right? It is about Jusendo. But it isn't Jusendo. It is what has happened since then that is the nightmare. In the dream, I am too late and Akane dies in my arms. This is tearing me up because I know I have lost Akane. Not just in the dream, but in reality. All I fought for, all the fights and curses, all the kidnapping and rescues. It all comes down to that. I lost. The 'great' Ranma Saotome," She said with bitter sarcasm, "has lost the girl he came to love, and at one time would have shared his life with. Even now, with all the animosity there is between us, I would still try to save her from harm, if I could."

"I fell in love with her that very first day, Nabiki. She alone greeted me in friendship, instead of distrust and disappointment. It lasted such a short time. I make very few friends, and far, far too many enemies. This has been even more apparent since that day in Jusenkyo. All too soon, Fate realized I had a chance at happiness, and the fights and insults started flying. That hurt Nabiki. I still ache from the feeling of betrayal that day when Akane's friendship died so soon after birth."

Ranma stood, and walked over to the window, and gazed out. Nabiki followed the redhead with her eyes. "This can't be Ranma." She muttered into her recorder, "Ranma couldn't explain his feelings if his life depended upon it..." She caught a slight, short lived smirk on the redhead's face in the reflection of the window. The shadowed pools of her eyes seemed to bore into Nabiki.

"Everything I am, and everything I do, is a threat to her self image. I am a better cook, I can sew, I can dance, I can swim, I have guys staring at me as a girl, and girls as a guy. I am better at martial arts... the list goes on. Unfortunately, my ego won't let her forget it either.

"I, too, am much at fault. Sadly, even in admitting that to you, I am doing something she can't seem to do: Admit where at least some of the blame for our problems lies. The final straw is being her iinazuke. She thinks that being my fiance will stop her from realizing her dreams. Even my curse is a threat to her identity."

"Who are you?" Nabiki finally interrupted. "You aren't Ranma."

Ranma's familiar smirk reappeared on her face. "Yes and no. As I said, Nabiki, something awoke within me when I was in that spring. I finally accepted that at Jusendo. I am no longer the Ranma Saotome you loved to torment and con. I haven't been for several months. Each day that goes by, I feel further away from that person."

"So, who are you then? Ranma, the girl from the spring, or both?" Nabiki asked. "Is that why you are still a girl?"

"Sorry, Nabiki, " Ranma sighed, and flashed the Tendo girl a wry smile, "didn't I say I wasn't going to answer questions? I gave you the last one, for free. Besides, I am sure you will figure it out on your own." Her smile turned into a grin as she said, "Now shush and let me finish."

Nabiki scowled, but held her tongue. For now.

Ranma's smile faded as she resumed, "So, to answer your first question again, yes, I am going away for a while. I must work out who I am before I can decide on what I need to do. I am not going to be with anyone you know, or anyplace I have ever been before, even with Genma."

She reached under her shirt and produced a folded parchment. "This last thing, I will leave with you. Know that your threat of revealing last night's tapes had little to nothing to do with my agreeing to meet you today. As far as the others go, Akane doesn't care, Ukyo has learned her lesson, Xian Pu is being dealt with," She glanced at the window before continuing. "and the Kunos, well, they never have been a true problem. Speaking of Kuno, you know that Akane and he could be brother and sister as bad as they are when it comes to denying the truth. I hope someday, the truth behind the pig is revealed. She will otherwise never see what is directly in front of her face."

"I leave you this last thing, and ask you not to reveal what was said tonight to anyone with the intent of making a profit. That goes against your nature, and your desire to provide for your family, but I believe that this little gem, of which you will be the only person from Nerima to know the details of, will alleviate some of the lost profits when the time is right. Please wait until I have departed to open it."

Ranma then turned to the window again. Standing, she bowed formally, left fist clasped in the palm of her right, before speaking in flawless Mandarin. "Know this Elder. It would be in your tribe's best interest to cease the useless pursuit of Saotome Ranma. He will nevermore be available as Xian Pu's Airen, or that of any of the Neichizu. His control over the power that destroyed Saffron, and half a mountain is not perfect. Should events continue as they have, unfortunate consequences could occur. He helped your village in time of need. Grant him the status as an honorary member of your nation, and he will always be available should the need arise again. Continue the attempts to hound him into submission, and that will no longer be true. He will seek your decision in one lunar cycle at the Tendo Training Hall. Consider this a promise Elder. You know the value of my word."

Nabiki stared as a ripple of light seemed to flare around Ranma before she turned and strode to her pack, and gracefully slipped it on her back. When the redhead finally turned to face her, she was greeted by an impish grin and raised eyebrow. This was quite a contrast to the puffy eyes, and tear streaked face.

"Uhh," Nabiki hesitated, then said, "Ranma?"

"Uhh, Nabiki?" The other girl echoed.

"When did you learn...?"

"Mandarin?" Ranma asked, interrupting. At the Tendo girl's nod, she said coyly, "Awww, Nabiki. You should already know the answer to that."

"Since, Jusendo?"

Ranma's grin grew into a true smile. "See, that wasn't so hard. With your intelligence, I don't expect it to take you too long to figure out what I just said."

Nabiki stared at her stonily.

"To save you some time," Ranma continued, "I will summarize it for you since it applies to you as well. I consider you and Kasumi to be the older sisters I never had. Even if you have made my like a little worse at times, I know you did much of it to help your family. I can respect that. In fact, the Tendo's have been the only family I have known. I make you the same promise and warning I just offered to our uninvited listener. I have helped your family in the past. I am willing to continue to help you and your family, as best as I am able, if ever there is need. However, if my trust in you or Kasumi is abused, much as Akane has lost that trust, so shall my willingness to help be lost. Consider this a promise. You, too, know the value of my word."

Nabiki blinked. For an instant, it had looked like Ranma's eyes had glowed.

The redhead smiled pleasantly at her, and bowed. "Thank you very much for listening to my story. I needed to get that into the open. Perhaps now, you at least will finally understand me. Good day to you... oneesan." Quietly, she slipped out and was gone before Nabiki could respond.

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At the Cherry Hill Shrine, Rei Hino stared deep into the sacred flame. She was attempting to see what was there to be seen. At the meeting earlier that evening, Ami had mentioned a disturbance far outside the normal areas. She could not give more information than that, other than it seemed to be from Nerima. If it was, there probably wasn't anything that the senshi need worry over. That Ward of Tokyo was as notorious for odd occurrences as Juuban and it had its own protectors. Still, if Ami was worried.

She took another deep calming breath. "Focus, Rei! Focus!" she chided herself, before relaxing into the meditative state. The dancing flames called to her spirit, inviting her in. She welcomed the call, and walked the paths of flame. Show me... The flames built up, growing stronger and there... just there... a figure? Her spirit danced among the flames, coaxing and enticing them to reveal their secret. Show me...

There! A female figure with flaming hair to her knees, wearing a strange set of clothes danced among the flames. She seemed as much at home among the fire as Rei... Was she an ally? The figure spun into a dance full of beauty, grace, bountiful joy and confidence... or foe? The dance halted. Flames roared higher around the figure, obscuring most of her as she turned to face Rei. Only her eyes were visible... molten, red eyes with a crimson starburst between. That starburst then flared golden brilliance as the eyes cleared to a vibrant blue. Eyes that held heart-wrenching sorrow... and a simmering anger.

Rei gasped and fell back on the cushions, shocked out of her reading... She had to tell the others... had to tell them... something... but what? Tell them about what? That girl? ...What could cause her so much emotional pain?

She felt the tracks of tears on her face. That poor girl... to know such happiness, only to have that terrible sorrow at the end. Could she be the source of the wild energy? Could she be the sixth Senshi?

------ End Wildfire Chapter 1 ------


	3. Wildfire Chapter 2

DISCLAIMER: I lay no claim to characters from Ranma 1/2, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Ah! My Goddess! Or any other character of any other anime that may, inadvertently or not, be within this story. They are the property of their respective authors. Characters and situations from those series are used without their consent. This is a work of fanfiction for which I do not expect nor will accept compensation. This fiction is based upon Ranma 1/2, with strong influence from Ah! My Goddess and lesser cameos from the Sailors and possibly Tenchi.

Champions of the 'true' fiancé probably won't like my portrayal of Akane or Shampoo. Ukyo gets off a little better, but she doesn't get lucky either. As it is a work of fanfiction, I am not trying to duplicate the canon Manga or Anime characters. Expect some (or a lot) of OOC.

------ Wildfire Chapter 02 ------

The sound of raised voices carried over the walls to the Tendo compound. This was not an uncommon occurrence here where insanely powerful martial artists competed for the life of one Ranma Saotome. Some competed to win him over... some competed to win over him. This time, however, the center of attention was missing and had been for a month, at least physically. He was the central reason for the argument currently raging at the Tendo home.

Ranma stood atop the roof of a house a few lots over from the Tendo compound and watched with disappointment at the disaster brewing there. Although he had invited some of these people to be here at this time, he certainly had not invited either Tatewaki Kuno or Happosai. Ryoga was not to be seen, but with his direction sense and Ranma's luck, he would arrive just in time to hear part of a conversation and go ballistic over a wrong impression. Ukyo was standing near the rear gates, looking in on the loud argument between Akane, Shampoo and Kuno without participating. For once, she was not armed with her usual assortment of cooking utensils.

Genma walked up to the fight going on, pushed up his glasses and said something that upset all three of the teens. "He must have said something about me marrying Akane..." Ranma muttered. Kuno waved his bokken around and struck a pose. Movement atop the nearer house drew Ranma's attention to a small figure holding something. An echoing boom rolled across the area, almost drowning out Akane's shout.

The cry of "Ojii No BAKA!" drew Ranma's attention back to the Tendo compound, away from Sassuke, the Kuno's pet ninja.

Genma earned an all expense paid trip to the koi pond via Air Akane's Uppercut Express. Instant Panda, just add water. Kuno rushed to embrace his 'Fierce Tigress,' and joined the floating panda in the pond. That was odd, he thought. Normally she'd kick Kuno into the stratosphere.

"Well, may as well go on in, now. No sense in delaying any more," Ranma muttered as he hopped from the roof to the fence and then down to the walkway bordering the street. He waved cheerfully at a few familiar faces among the people on the street, then headed off toward the dojo. Almost as one, the people on the street blinked, and then hurried away from the area. When Ranma Saotome looked cheerful, bad things happened near the Tendo Dojo. The street cleared rapidly as the word spread. The young martial artist frowned a bit at their reaction, but shrugged and walked on anyway.

The past month had been priceless. At first, there were no fiancées, no challengers, no loons, no ancient masters, no... anyone. Although that had been dull, at least he had found the focus he needed to move on. A vacation was what he had needed. It was incredible what one could do with a bit of time and a chunk of soul searching. Once he reached Okiyama, things had really picked up. The visit to the Misaki Shrine outside Okiyama had helped in ways the solitude of the prior week had not. At least he knew now that his wasn't the only screwed up life. That young man, Tenchi, was being chased by almost as many girls as he was.

Ryoko was something else. She would likely give Herb a run for his money if they ever met. Ayeka reminded him of Akane in some ways and Xian Pu in others. She was constantly jumping to conclusions, and never listened to the other side of the story before flying off the handle. Thankfully, her aggression usually was directed at Ryoko. His conversations with little Sassami were often more helpful than most of his meditations. "That girl, he thought, "there was something about that girl that was... familiar. She felt..." Ranma shrugged. He couldn't explain, even to himself, what he sensed from the younger girl. But, there was a power in her that even Ryoko and Ayeka paled against in comparison.

Sparring with the old man had been a real eye opener. His skill was incredible. He would likely be an easy match for Happosai or Khu Lon. He had shown Ranma a few weak spots in his defense and with a few of his techniques. This was even more apparent with his initial response to Ryo-oh-ki. The Neko-ken was a major weakness against an opponent that knew about it. They had worked on correcting a few of the flaws, but the Neko-ken and a few others would have to be dealt with later. For now, he resolved to avoid conflicts as much as possible. If those flaws were exploited, not that they had been up to now, they could leave her vulnerable at a time she would need to be strong. Ranma winced at his thoughts... HE would need to be strong.

As it was, there was still a vast amount of work to be done before he felt he would be complete. He would still be working on that had he not made the promise to return no later than tonight. All the soul searching up to this point allowed him to become more at peace with himself. He had tried to do this often on the roof of the Tendo home, but there was always someone or something to distract him there. Perhaps he would take Sassami up on her offer and return when things were settled here.

One thing the time had allowed him was the chance to come to grips, finally, with his - curse. He no longer thought of it as a curse, exactly. It was more like a skill, or technique, that one must master. Although he had accepted it as a part of himself so many months ago, he had never been comfortable with it. He still wasn't comfortable with the change, but, with acceptance, the path to understanding had opened. With understanding, he was finally learning to control the change. His control was not perfected and required a constant use of ki, but a casual splash was no longer a thing to fear. Prolonged exposure or large quantities of water, such as steady rain or being thrown into a lake, were far harder to resist. On the other hand, maintaining the control helped him in other ways. Each day, the control grew easier as his ki steadily grew from constant use.

He could even change without water, although it was very hard. It left him feeling drained, as he had when he first developed that ki based attack, the Mouko Takabisha or used the Hiryu Shoten Ha for the first time. Perhaps with practice it would come easier, as they had become. As it was now, it always left her feeling like taking a nap in the sun.

By far it was easier to allow the change normally and then use the technique to lock his form in the current shape than to force the change without water. That 'lock' wasn't permanent, but a few hours of peace from worrying about changing unexpectedly were better than the alternative. He still couldn't go swimming as a guy, and anything stronger than a light shower would still trigger the change, if she was a guy. But, all things considered, this was better than being subject to the whim of every stray splash of water.

Everything was set with the Department of Records. It would require his presence and hanko to reverse the changes to the records he had requested prior to leaving. Genma no longer could control his destiny. It would likely take a bit of convincing to get it through the panda's thick skull, though.

Ranma was sick of everything. Sick of fiancées. Sick of fighting for a spoiled brat with nothing better to do than continue the vicious cycle of insults and physical abuse. But most of all, sick of being taken for granted. Things were going to change, one way or another.

The gate to the Tendo compound loomed in front of the young martial arts master. He paused at the back gate, closest to the dojo and then continued around to the front entrance. This place had been his home for almost two years, now. In fact, it was the only home he remembered thanks to the training trip. However, if things went bad tonight, and it was almost guaranteed to do so, well, best talk to her first.

He sighed and muttered, "Time to end this mess. One way, or another." Raising his hand, he pulled on the door chime. The single musical tone of the brass chime rang throughout the Tendo compound.

---------------------------

"I'll get it," Kasumi called from the kitchen. No sense in disturbing the - guests she thought. As the eldest Tendo headed for the entry, she looked out upon the yard between the house and the dojo. The situation had not improved after Ranma departed for his training trip. If anything, it had become worse. This was particularly true with Akane. She sighed and shook her head at her thoughts aa she proceeded down the hall.

Shortly after Ranma left, Happosai returned from wherever he had disappeared to following the wedding. Although he left Nabiki-chan and herself alone, without Ranma-kun there to distract her father's old master, Akane was bearing the majority of Happosai's 'training.' Worse, he constantly and loudly blamed her for Ranma's disappearance, saying something about delaying the proper instruction to his heir. Or, was it punishment? In any case, Happosai blamed Akane for Ranma's absence, and Akane blamed Ranma for not being there to protect her from the old master.

Kasumi approached the front door, hoping that the caller was not another uninvited suitor or challenger. She felt that would be most distressing to her home's wa. Kuno-san and Happosai had already strained the harmony of the household. Opening the door, she smiled warmly and said, "Welcome to the Tendo Residence... Oh! Ranma-kun. Please, come in!"

"Thanks, Kasumi-chan," The pigtailed young man said, his charming grin mirroring her own smile.

Blushing, Kasumi closed the door behind the young man. It had been a while since anyone had called her that. That made each time very special to her. "Why didn't you come on in, Ranma? This is your home, too."

"Well, I kinda wanted ta see you first," he explained, "and this seemed the best way."

"You wanted to see me?" She asked, then continued when he nodded, "Whatever for?"

"Ummm, how to put this. Well, ya see," he paused and scratched the back of his neck under his long ponytail. "I'm not sure how things are gonna go out there with the others. I hope it turns out ok, but," he sighed, "I just wanted to see ya before then and thank you."

"You do not need to thank me for anything Ranma-kun," Kasumi assured him with a smile.

"I, I feel like I do, Kasumi. You alone have always made me feel welcome here and like a part of a family. Without that, I'da been outta here a long time ago. Whatever does happen, I wanted ya to know, I," he paused and then blushed as he stammered,"l-love ya."

"Oh! Oh, My!" Kasumi gasped. 'He couldn't mean...' she thought. "R-Ranma," she paused, unsure of what to say to the young man. "I think it is a bit late to become your fiancée..."

"N-not l-like that!" he stammered, waving his hands quickly and blushing even more, "Like a sister! I never had a family, except for pop, and he ain't exactly the lovin type, ya know." He looked earnestly into her eyes. "I always wondered what it would be like. I'd say you've been just what I imagined an older sister would be like. So, thank you Kasumi-neechan, for everything." Ranma trailed off then and stood there nervously.

"Oh!" Kasumi smiled, and relaxed, "what a sweet thing to say Ranma-kun." Stepping up she hugged him much to his apparent shock. "Thank you, little brother." Truthfully, after that first week, she had started seeing the young man as a family member. Now, if only he and Akane would work things out between them, it could be official.

"R-Ranchan?" a voice interrupted from the hall.

Kasumi felt a frown on her face, and rapidly schooled her expression into its usual pleasant mask. She released Ranma and turned to face the young woman who had interrupted.

"Kuonji-san, why are you here today?" her 'little brother' asked in a tone unusually cold for him. She didn't recall ever hearing that tone of voice from anyone except Nabiki.

The Kuonji girl, Ukyo, paled at his words, but walked quickly up to the pair and stopped a respectful distance away. She then bowed and said, "I came - I am here to apologize for my past behavior. What I did was - wrong - and, I'm sorry. I hope that someday, you will forgive me. I - I still want to be your friend, even if I cannot be more."

Ukyo sounded sincere to Kasumi. The tears falling to the floor as she held herself in the bow helped that impression. Looking at Ranma, Kasumi watched his expression soften as he stepped up to the silently crying girl and pulled her into his arms. It appeared that he still couldn't resist a crying girl.

"Of course I forgive you, Ukyo," the young martial artist said gently. "All you had to do was ask. I'll be your friend as long as you want me to be."

The dam burst and Ukyo tears erupted fully into sobbing as she clung to Ranma. He stood there, holding her, as she cried into his shoulder. The young man looked toward Kasumi over Ukyo's head. His clear blue eyes, deep and soulful, gazed into hers as he asked, "Would you give us a few minutes, Kasumi?"

"Certainly, Ranma-kun," she replied with a small smile. "Just do not keep them waiting long. Our fathers have been most distressed since you left - as has Akane." She watched his face as it hardened into a neutral mask when she mentioned her youngest sister, but he then nodded and turned his attention back to the girl in his arms, his expression that of worry.

She turned and headed slowly back toward the kitchen, thinking about what she saw. From his expression, Ranma's feelings towards her little sister had changed. Instead of blustering nervously about the 'uncute tomboy,' he walled away what had looked like anger. This engagement was never going to work out, now. She had so hoped that the engagement would help her sister to grow up. Instead, she still acted like a little child.

------------------------------

"Damn that Baka. How dare he come here and try to claim me. I am not a prize to be won!" Akane growled out to no one in particular as she gazed at the floating form of Tatewaki Kuno.

"Bwip, Bweee!" P-Chan cried, agreeing with with her.

"Shampoo agree with violent girl. She no prize," the Chinese bimbo giggled before being hushed by the old crone.

"WHAT? What do you mean by that you... you... hussy?" Akane demanded angrily.

The purple haired amazon turned towards her, big eyes wide in fake innocence, "Shampoo mean what Shampoo say. Akane right. Akane not prize to be won."

"So, you think I'm not good enough to be a prize is that it?" The Tendo heir demanded. 'How dare she say that?' she thought to herself.

"So, Akane" Nabiki's voice drawled from the porch, "are you going to yell at her if she agrees with you... or if she disagrees with you?" Akane whirled and glared at her older sister. The smirk on Nabiki's face did nothing to calm her down.

"Stay outta this, Nabiki. She shouldn't even be here. Ranma is MY fiancé!" she stated.

"Great-Grandmother say Airen invite Shampoo here, so Shampoo here," the amazon warrior said smugly.

Akane glared at her and then the wizened figure perched on a rock prodding the ground with her staff. "Hmpff! So stay! See if I care. At least Ukyo knew when to leave," she growled, "unlike some people!"

"Akane..." another voice called.

She spun around once more and yelled, "WHAT!"

"G-go get some h-hot water from Kasumi, f-for Genma," Suon stammered out, nearly in tears.

"Why should I do anything for that lazy panda?" she demanded as her glare shifted focus to the dripping animal. "He is your friend. You get the water!"

"Waaaahhh! My little baby hates me!" Suon wailed as his fragile grasp over his emotions shattered easily once again. Out of habit, Genma leapt away from the Tendo Family Waterworks and landed right back in the koi pond.

Akane glared at her father for a moment longer then turned and stomped off toward the house. "Fine! I'll get the stupid water for the stupid panda."

As she neared the walk, she saw Kasumi walk around the corner from the front hall. 'What was she doing there?' Akane thought, 'Oh! Right. The door chime.' She changed direction and met her older sister in the common room.

"Father wants some hot water for the panda," she said when Kasumi looked at her inquisitively.

"Hmmm? Water for Uncle Saotome?" she asked. At Akane's nod she said, "Okay, come along." The oldest Tendo daughter led the youngest to the kitchen and picked up the kettle from the stove. "Oh, dear. I will have to heat more water."

"Whatever," Akane grumbled. "It probably won't matter to the Panda. Who was at the door, Kasumi?"

"Another - participant - in the meeting this evening," her sister replied as she filled the kettle and set it over the burner.

"Another fiancée?" Akane assumed. 'That perverted Baka. I bet that's where he has been all month,' she thought before demanding to know where this new fiance was at.

"Oh, Akane, you are so silly sometimes," Kasumi said as she giggled. "I doubt he is another fiancé."

"Oh. So then, he is another challenger," she guessed. "Is that it?"

The older Tendo paused a bit before answering, "No, I don't believe so." She then resumed the task of putting together some snacks she had interrupted to answer the door.

"So, why is HE here?" Akane demanded. Her limited patience, already strained by the idiots crowded in front of the dojo, was beginning to wear very thin. "And, WHO is he?"

"You will have to ask that of Ranma, when he starts the meeting," she replied after another thoughtful pause. "Would you hand me the napkins? Thank you, little sister."

"You just left a boy at the door?" the younger Tendo asked in amazement. "That doesn't sound like you, Kasumi."

"Hmmm?" KasumI paused what she was doing and looked at her younger sibling. "Oh, well, he is a friend of Ukyo-san. They met at the door as she was leaving, so he is talking to her right now. I told him to come on in when they are through talking."

"Who is it? Tsubasa or Konatsu?" Akane guessed, determined to get the answers from her older sister.

"Oh, neither one." Kasumi replied as the kettle started to steam slightly. "I think the water is almost ready. Would you hand me the serving tray there? Thank you."

"Well then, Who. Is. He," Akane snapped as she handed the requested tray to Kasumi.

Kasumi frowned at her younger sister for a moment. "Akane, please do not use that tone of voice with me. It is most impolite!" Kasumi scolded.

The youngest Tendo bowed her head and fought down her temper. Kasumi wasn't at fault. Ranma was. It wasn't right to yell at her for things Ranma had done. She would be sure to smack him for making Kasumi upset at her.

Kasumi finished preparing the snack tray as the kettle started to whistle. Lifting the kettle from the stove, she handed it over to Akane with a small smile. "Here you go little sister. Please take it out for Mr. Saotome. But, be careful. It is very warm."

"Ok, Kasumi. I'm sorry I snapped at you."

Kasumi's smile broadened after Akane apologized and she nodded before turning her attention back to gathering the snacks and tea for the guests.

As Akane walked back through he common room towards the back yard, she heard the sounds of sobbing coming down the hall from the front door. Along with the sobbing was a male voice, also just barely heard. Something about it was familiar. Glancing at the still steaming kettle, Akane set it down on the porch and headed toward the front door quietly. The panda could wait. She didn't like Ukyo, but if some pervert was making her cry...

As she neared the turn in the corridor, she heard the familiar voice softly speaking over Ukyo's quieting sobs. "Ukyo. Ucchan. I need you to go home for now. I - I don't want you mixed up in this anymore."

"Ok, Ranchan. But..."

RANMA! Akane's eyes narrowed as she crept closer. The familiar uncontrollable fury was not there, just a simmering anger all her own.

"I'll stop by as soon as I can." Ranma's voice replied, interrupting Ukyo's protest.

"P-Promise?" the okonomiyaki chef asked.

"Hey," the Saotome boy protested. "I may be a jackass at times..."

"HA! Try all the time, Ranma!" Akane snapped as she jumped around the corner. Sure enough, there was a red faced Ukyo standing there with Ranma pawing all over her. "I see you couldn't wait to fondle your 'Cute Fiancée,' you JERK! Why did you even bother coming back? Pervert!"

------------------------------

Ukyo nearly jumped into Ranma's arms when Akane burst from around the corner and yelled at them. The youngest Tendo stood there glaring at them and insulting Ranma, like usual. "Leave Ranchan alone, Akane!" Ukyo cried back at her.

"Please, Ukyo. Don't bother..." Ranma began before Akane cut him off.

"Oh, ho! I see! You two want to be alone together!" the youngest Tendo sneered. "Well, too bad!"

"Yo! Akane, calm down. That is not what's going on he..." Ranma tried again.

"I am not," Akane yelled, interrupting the Saotome youth once more, "going to let you flirt with another girl in my home!"

"I was just saying goodbye to..." the pony tailed boy replied. Ukyo was in something of a shock at this point. Ranma wasn't insulting Akane, and Akane hadn't punted Ranchan across the rooftops yet.

"I can't believe you would stand there and grope her like that," the furious teenager continued, ignoring Ranma's attempts to explain what was going on.

"You aren't listening to me, are you?" he asked. Ukyo could hear the sorrow in his voice. She looked closely at his face. For the first time, she saw what this argument was doing to him. She could see the pain in his eyes as Akane continued to accuse him of things that probably had nothing to do with what he had done over the last month.

"You run away for a month, probably sucking up to yet another fiancée..."

"Nope, you're not," he said before he turned partially back to face Ukyo, "Look, Ucchan, this is gonna be a while. Go home. Please."

"...doing who knows what kind of perverted things, and what do you do the first thing?..." Akane continued to rant, making it hard for Ukyo to hear Ranchan.

"Okay, Ranchan. You'll stop by before you leave, right?" After Ranma nodded his assent, Ukyo glared at Akane and then departed for home.

"...you hanging all over that tramp. I bet you can't wait to jump on Shampoo now that Ukyo is gone..." Akane's voice followed her out of the Tendo compound.

'That... that... OOOH!' Ukyo seethed as she stamped her foot. 'If I hadn't promised Ranchan I would stay out of this...' Gritting her teeth. Ukyo headed home, trusting that Ranma would come to see her soon.

-------------------------------

Inside the entry to the Tendo home, Ranma listened to his 'fiancée's' tirade for a while longer as he tried to calm her down. With his failure to do so came a growing sense of frustration.

"Akane..." Ranma tried again, his face darkening with repressed anger.

"What are you waiting for?" Akane interrupted, again. "Shampoo is camped out by the dojo with her grandmother. Isn't that who you really came back for? She said you invited her here, after all!"

"That's it. I've had it," Ranma growled, took a deep breath, then brushed past the walking temper tantrum and snatched up his pack. Then, as Akane followed him, ranting the entire time, he moved down the hall toward the dojo. "What did I do to deserve this?" he muttered. Finally they exited from the house and out into the yard facing the dojo and the gathered audience.

The shouting then escalated.

"Ranma, you worthless boy..." Ok, so it was a large panda sign. Close enough to a shout.

"Airen! You marry Shampoo now, Yes?"

"OH HO HO HO HO HO! My darling Ranma-sama returns to me at last!"

Ranma jerked, and looked around nervously. 'Where had SHE come from? No, wait. She wasn't here." He shuddered at his overactive imagination.

"BweeeeeEEEE! Scroink!"

'Ryoga must be screaming RaaaaaanmAA! DIEEE!' the young martial artist mused as he spared the pig a glance.

"Waaaaahhh! At last our families will be one!"

"Saotome, you fiend! Release my Shampoo!"

Through the chaos, he walked calmly to the center of the yard, and set his pack down near the koi pond. Ignoring the pig as it began chewing on his leg, he frowned at the dazed kendoist floating insensate in the pond. Kneeling, he fished the elder Kuno sibling from the pond and propped him against the tree.

He turned to find himself face to face with a scowling Genma. "Answer me boy! Where have you been? How could you abandon your fiancée at a time like this?" he barked as he dropped an empty kettle.

"Which one of the fiancées would that be, Genma?" Ranma queried, miming Nabiki once more. He stared coldly at the sputtering man for a moment before turning to one of the few people not yelling. "Do you have an answer for me Elder?" The perfect Mandarin rolling from him startled most of the people into silence.

Answering in kind, Khu Lon stated, "Indeed I do... Son-in-Law." She watched as the young man's expression hardened before continuing. "There are only two ways I may grant your request now that a kiss of marriage has been issued. The status you seek may be gained as the husband of an Nechezu warrior. Or, in your case, as the sister of one." She smiled as Ranma smothered his growing anger and bowed briefly to her.

"Very well, Elder. You will know my decision shortly." As he straightened, he dodged a blow from an enraged Genma.

"Pay attention to me, you lazy boy!" he snarled. "Honor demands you marry Akane. You will satisfy the honor of the Saotome and Tendo clans tonight!" The elder Saotome either missed or ignored the look of utter contempt Ranma gave him as the shouting once again flooded the evening air.

"NO! I'll NEVER marry a pervert like HIM!"

"N-NAY! The g-great t-Tatewaki Kuno will not allow this!"

"Bweeee!" cried P-chan, pausing his patented angry piglet ankle chew attack long enough to protest.

"Waaaaah! At last our families will be joined."

"Airen is Shampoo's Husband!"

"FINE THEN! YOU CAN HAVE HIM!"

"Saotome you FIEND! How DARE you steal my Shampoo's affections!"

"Ohh, my darling Ranma-sama. Surely you will dump that peasant and gaijin trollop..."

Ranma shuddered again, wondering where the gymnast was hiding. He glanced around again before turning to face the gathered 'friends' and 'family'. He drew a deep breath and focused his ki and, unconsciously, some of that other power.

"SILENCE!" Ranma roared, startling everyone into momentary quiet. "I will have MY say. For the first time ever, YOU WILL LISTEN!" His aura flared a brilliant blue for a moment and wisps of mist drifted up from a suddenly frosted patch of grass. P-chan staggered away from his rival, frost coating his suddenly numb snout.

"Saotome! DihuurK!" Mousse staggered back and collapsed to the ground, his legs failing to support him as he clutched his throat. Apparently unable to speak or stand, he sat there staring furiously at Ranma.

Ranma, stood where he was before, a smirk upon his face, with one finger raised toward the myopic duck-cursed boy. Everyone else looked on in silent shock. They knew he was fast, but no one had seen him move against Mousse. Not even Khu Lon had seen the actual strike. "I said you would listen, Mu Tsu, not rant. Does anyone else choose to interrupt me?" he asked, looking around.

Most of the 'guests' stared at Ranma and then Mousse. Several heads shook silently. Mousse struggled against the pressure points, glaring at Ranma. A rustling in the bushes drew Ranma's attention. Upon investigating further, he found Kodachi. The deranged gymnast lay hog-tied behind the shrubs. A chewed through gag lay on the ground nearby. She gazed up at him feverishly and cooed, "I knew you would come to my rescue, my darling Ranma-sama."

Shuddering, he tapped the same points he had used on Mousse and released her from her bonds. Then, he carried her over to hand her off to her strangely silent brother. Ranma gazed steadily into the taller youth's eyes. For once, he saw calm respect from the kendoist. Nodding once to the older boy he looked around at his assembled 'friends' and asked, "Anyone else?"

He saw Akane looking at him with anticipation. She seemed to be waiting for something. Following her gaze, he looked at his feet and frowned. The pig had recovered from his brief brush with Ranma's icy aura and was once again attempting to bite him down to size.

"P-chan," he said. "Please stop that."

The pig ignored him and continued to chew on his ankle.

"P-chan. If you don't stop, I'll be forced to ask Kasumi to give you a hot bath."

Freezing in place, P-chan looked up at Ranma's face before darting into Akane's arms.

"Ranma!" Akane snapped.

Looking up and meeting Akane's gaze, he raised an eyebrow, silently prompting her to continue.

"Stop picking on P-chan, you jerk!" she growled.

Shaking his head slightly he responded politely, "How, exactly, did I just pick on him?"

"You were teasing him." She stated angrily.

"I see," he replied as calmly as before. "My apologies, P-chan, for teasing you." Looking back up to meet Akane's gaze, he asked, "Does that satisfy your pet's honor, Akane?"

Stunned, all Akane could do was nod her head.

"Good!" Ranma nodded, "Now, we may actually have a chance at settling some things. By the way, Mu Tsu, Kodachi-san," Ranma stated pleasantly, "the shaitsu points I used on you will wear off in a few hours. I thank you for allowing me to demonstrate their effectiveness.

"On to business then. Mister Tendo?" Suon jerked and looked toward the youth. "Do you love your youngest daughter so little, that you would force her to marry someone she clearly hates?"

Suon remained silent as his lower lip quivered and tears streamed from his eyes in rivers.

"Well? Do you?" he asked again, growing impatient with the blubbering man.

As Ranma stalked toward the Tendo patriarch, a slow motion drew his attention to the side. Khu Lon had her staff raised into the air and an amused expression on her face.

"What?" he snapped.

"Well, Son-in-Law," she drawled out, eliciting a wince from the young man. "You did demand silence." Her smile broadened into a cheerful grin as Ranma groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose with one hand.

A whispered "Baka" drew his gaze over to a red faced Akane. He glared at her a moment, then grinned and nodded at her. "Okay. I deserved that," he admitted. Turning back to the Tendo patriarch, he ignored the multiple face faults scattered about the yard and said, "Please, Mister Tendo. Answer my question."

"The schools m-must be joined. Honor must be served!" Suon sputtered.

"That wasn't my question," Ranma sighed, "But, I guess that is your answer. Love don't matter to you. Hate don't matter to you. Only the chance to 'retire' and live of your daughter's work matters at all."

The young Saotome circled the blubbering man as he spoke. "So, against everything that shows that we should not be married, you wanna force us into it anyway. Right? You want the Tendo line to be joined to the line of Genma Saotome."

"Yes!" Suon cried, his tears continued unabated. "That's it exactly! I'm so happy you finally see it, Son!"

"Yah, whatever." Ranma snorted. "Never mind the utter lack of honor with which Genma has held the promised engagement. Never mind all the other fiancées. Never mind that to unite your family with that of Genma's would bring that dishonorable fool into your family." Shaking his head, he turned to face Akane. She had P-chan clutched in a crushing grip to her chest. The pig-cursed boy glared at Ranma even as he struggled to free himself from her grip.

"Well, Akane-san? What is your wish? Do you wanna marry the son of Genma Saotome?" he asked, his face calm and his tone serious.

"No! Of course not, you jerk! There is no way I would ever want to marry a perverted freak like you!" P-chan's struggles suddenly stopped as the little pig looked at Akane with tear filled eyes. "You want to know what I want? I want you to go away and never come back!" Her pig slowly turned to glare at Ranma, a flickering green fire burned at the back of those eyes.

"Thank you for your honesty, Akane-san." Ranma said as calmly as before. Smiling at her, he called out to her sisters in the house. "Nabiki-san, Kasumi-chan. I need to ask you a question please!"

"What do you want them for, Ranma?" Akane demanded.

Ranma glanced at her and replied, "As I said, Akane, I gotta ask them something."

"I won't let you hurt my sisters, you pervert!" the Tendo heir stated, her voice dripping with venom. She clutched P-chan to her even tighter as her glare remained unabated.

"Akane," he sighed, "when have I ever done anything to harm them?" he paused, then glancing down said, "You might wanna relax a little. Your pet is starting to turn purple..."

Akane gasped and dropped to her knees to tend to her 'pet' as her sisters stepped out onto the walk overlooking the yard.

"So, Ranma," Nabiki asked, "what do you need us for?"

Ignoring the youngest Tendo, he asked the older sisters, "Do either of you think that the proposed marriage of Akane Tendo and Genma Saotome's son is a good idea?"

The two sisters looked at each other, and then shook their heads.

"Aloud please. I want this on your tape, Nabiki."

Nabiki shrugged and smirked at him. "Nope. I think it's a terrible idea. Sooner or later, one of you will kill the other. And, considering you refuse to even defend yourself from Akane - well, lets just say I don't want my little sis to become a murderer."

"Oh, My!" Kasumi looked shocked as she stood next to Nabiki.

"Kasumi?" Ranma inquired.

"Hmm?"

"Do you approve of the engagement?"

"Oh..." Kasumi looked at her father, then at Akane, and finally at Ranma. "No, Ranma-kun, I do not approve. Even after all you have done for us, and for Akane in particular, it would not be right to force either of you into that situation. It would only further destroy the harmony of this family. She has not grown up enough to realize what you mean to her, and what she meant to you."

Noting the past tense in that last statement, Ranma nodded. "Thank you. Would you happen to have any hot water?"

"Of course, Ranma-kun!" Kasumi produced a steaming kettle before she and Nabiki retreated into the house.

Ranma turned to Suon and his father and set down the kettle between them. "Well. You heard 'em. What is your decision? Are you going to force this idiocy to continue?"

Genma looked from the house, to Ranma, and then Suon. He snorted. "Quit whining, Ranma. You sound like a little girl. You WILL marry Akane. There can be no other answer."

Laughing, Ranma walked back to his pack, and pulled a simple wooden bucket from within. "That has been your favorite saying all along, old man. 'Ranma, you sound like a girl.' Funny you should say that, now." Squatting down, Ranma filled the bucket with some water from the pond. As he stood he saw Khu Lon's eyes widen.

"A lot of problems around here are because I am here. Actually, it doesn't matter where I am, there are problems simply because I am." Ranma stood casually and looked toward Genma. "Last chance, old man. What's it gonna be. Will you cancel the agreement with the Tendos?"

"Foolish boy!" Genma rumbled. "You have no choice. Your feelings don't have anything to do with the engagement. It is a matter of honor. You WILL uphold the family honor!"

"So be it" Ranma stated flatly. He sighed upended the bucket over his head. He allowed the change to flow over herself and locked her form with her new technique. She gathered a ball of red-gold ki, tossed the fake Chuisuton into the evening sky, and vaporized it. A fine white ash settled over Genma. "Happy now?" she asked. "Ranma Saotome is no more. He died at Jusendo, along with the love he held for Akane." Placing her hands on her hips, she glared at the sputtering bald martial artist.

As Genma gaped at her, Ranma looked around the yard. Everyone was staring at her with a look of shock upon their face. Everyone except Elder Khu Lon. Her expression was grim as she sat upon the stone. She matched Ranma's gaze and cocked a single eyebrow at her. Genma found his voice, drawing Ranma's attention back to him.

"Ranma, do you take me for a fool? You can't hide in your curse!" Snatching up the kettle, Genma dumped its near boiling contents over the diminutive redhead. "Now stop this foolishness. You still... haven't..." Genma stood staring at the grinning girl. The kettle fell from his nerveless grasp.

"Thanks for the hot shower, Saotome-san. I really don't like the smell of the fish from the pond." Fully prepared for the scalding water, she used her new technique to prevent the hot water from burning her, and at the same time, prevented the curse from triggering. Somehow, she was able to draw off the heat and convert it into that other energy form. She still wasn't sure what it was, but there was alot of it. Now, she used that energy to dry her clothes in a flash of steam. She stepped back to her pack, smirking at the stunned Saotome elder. "But, I believe you were looking for something like this." She pulled a battered old kettle from her pack, watching Genma carefully. When she saw his eyes widen in realization of what he thought it was, she threw it up into the air.

Genma immediately leapt up and snatched it from the air. He landed facing away from his son-turned daughter. Laughing, pushing his glasses back up on his face. "HA! Too slow, boy!"

"Who are you calling slow, Mister Saotome? And in case you have not noticed, just as you always claimed, I'm a girl. I will be for a long, long time." She held up another battered old kettle and smirked.

Genma whirled in time to see the kettle she held up melt into slag in her hands.

"I'm sorry, Mister Saotome. As I said, Ranma Saotome is no more." She turned and glanced at Tatewaki Kuno. He and Kodachi were staring at her with gleaming eyes. "Yo! Tatewaki-kun! Thanks for all your help. I'm finally free from the true sorcerer, Genma Saotome, my former father. Isn't that great?" the redhead winked at him and giggled.

Ranma turned to face her 'fiancée.' Akane stood on the porch with a shocked expression on her face, and an unconscious pig in her arms. "Careful Akane, you don't want to squeeze P-chan to death. You are free from the engagement as far as I am concerned. You have your wish at last. Ranma Saotome will be gone from your life. Any chaos in your life from this point is of your own making. Not mine." She started to turn away from the shocked girl, then said over her shoulder, "Oh, By the way! Congratulations. You have defeated me twice. First, against all odds, you earned my love, and then you destroyed it. You should be proud. Not many people can claim to have defeated me."

"Elder Khu Lon..." she began, turning toward the amazon Matriarch, only to end up face to face with an enraged Genma.

"Ranma! What have you done?" he roared, shaking the copper kettle in the redhead's face.

She smirked at him and replied, "Do you not remember Prince Herb?"

"Of course I remember! What kind of son are you to turn your back on the agreement between the Saotome and Tendo families? Are you a coward to hide as a girl when the family honor is at stake? Honor demands you wed Akane!"

"Mister Saotome," she began frostily, "First, I am no longer your son, legally or physically. After tonight, the Saotome name no longer has any meaning for me."

"Wha...?" Genma sputtered. "What do you mean by that?"

"Oh, you haven't heard?" the redhead gasped in sweet voice. "Silly me. It must have slipped my weak girly mind." She giggled brightly. "Ranma is no longer a Saotome. He had himself removed from the family register."

"That's - that's not possible! You can't do that! When... How...?" Genma trailed off, then finished with, "...Why?" Ranma could see all the hopes Genma had built up begin crashing down.

"Oh, My! But it is possible, Mister Saotome," Ranma replied, her cute grin changing into a remarkable likeness of Kasumi's serene smiles. "He was old enough to make his own decisions. To answer your other questions, before he left last month, by filling out the paperwork, and because it was the only way to maintain the honor of the Tendo and Kuonji families, thanks to your own honorless activities."

Genma gaped at his son turned nameless girl. She stepped around him and approached the Amazon Matriarch who stood near the unconscious forms of the younger amazons. Before she could say anything however, Genma recovered what wits he had and grabbed the redhead from behind by her long flowing hair.

"You, you ungrateful little punk!" he snarled, "How could you do this to me after all I have suffered for you!"

Slapping a few shaitsu points to free herself from his grasp, she glared at the fat man while dodging his attempts to snare her with his other arm. "After all... YOU have suffered... for ME?" She broke into bitter laughter. "Riiight. I almost forgot... you actually have convinced yourself... all the crap... you pulled... has been for my benefit. You are as delusional as ever, Mister Saotome." She shook her head sadly before tripping him once more into the koi pond. "Multiple engagements, insanely dangerous and often idiotic training techniques, constantly selling me for food you ate, or to get yourself out of trouble, lying, theft... Need I go on old man?" The wave of displaced water washed over the immobile young Amazons.

She watched the panda drag himself from the pond. "No. I do not see how YOU have suffered at all. Whenever there was a problem you couldn't run away from - there Ranma was, a convenient bartering piece. You have done nothing for his benefit. You have suffered nothing for his benefit. Even your curse is more of a blessing to you. You use it to hide from your problems all the time. All you have done is drag the Saotome name into the dirt. What honor your branch of the clan had was destroyed long before now, Mister Saotome. You are not worthy of being Ranma's father. You are not worthy of telling me how to live my life. You are not worthy of being related to the Tendo or Kuonji clans or even to one of the Amazons."

Once more she turned to face the grim faced old woman from China. "Elder..." she began before being interrupted again.

"Sweetoo!" cried the little brown blur that buried itself in Ranma's chest.

"Gyah! Get the h - Get OFF! Get offa me ya little freak!" Ranma shrieked, her aura flaring a brilliant gold. Everyone in the yard backed quickly away from the two as the redhead shuddered under the ministrations of the ancient hentai master. She could actually feel him draining her ki and absorbing it into himself. She began bouncing around the yard, smacking him repeatedly on the head. This only had the effect of pressing him deeper into his technique.

"Ohhh!" he cooed, "My precious darlings are here to stay! Thank you, Ranma-chan! Your gift is accepted. Eh? What's this?" he finished as the redhead landed near the koi pond and stood stiffly while glaring down at him. Her ki tasted, different, stronger...

"What have you been up to, my dear?" the lecher asked looking up into the face of the girl he was fondling for the first time. His mouth dropped open in shock as he stared at the glowing visage.

Genma apparently noticed the expression as well. A memory of an event two years past flashed through his mind. The pain of the last time he saw those marks came roaring into focus. He flashed a sign, "RUN!" He flipped the sign over, showing, "He hasn't been this mad since Jusenkyo!" Genma, true to form, prepared to perform the Saotome Final Attack - Run Away maneuver.

Khu Lon fell off her rock and stared at her Son-in... at Ranma-sama in profound shock.

"I have put up with this long enough. Let go. Now." Ranma ground out in a quiet voice that nonetheless was clearly heard by all. Her face was twisted into a savage snarl. Glowing symbols appeared between and to either side of her eyes. The marks were glowing a bright crimson hue matching her aura as it began to flicker and dance like flames. Intense heat poured off of her as if the flame like aura was actual fire.

"Go - goddess!" Happosai whimpered quietly, frozen in mid grope. Shock was plainly visible on his features as he gaped up at Ranma's glowing face.

A young girl's voice cried out, "Got You!" as Ranma's danger sense flared like crazy. Spinning, she just caught the sight of black hair as the business end of a hammer slammed up into her chin, knocking her into the nighttime sky, along with a smoking Happosai.

Before anyone else could move, the small figure cried out, "OH, NO! Not again!" With that she dove back into the koi pond she had emerged from and disappeared from view.

Silence fell across the Tendo compound.

Khu Lon quietly picked up her two young charges and darted over the wall.

"What just happened, Tendo?" Signed the panda.

"Come with me Mister Saotome," Nabiki called, "and I'll list it out for you. In triplicate." She grinned as the panda-man flinched under her cold gaze.

------------------------------

"Awaken, my child," a male voice intruded upon the troubled dream gripping the young martial artist. She struggled against the unseen bonds that held her arms and legs. The howling coming from the pit stirred the great fear in her soul.

"Nooo, papa. I don't wanna go back in. Please, papa," she moaned. A shadowy figure held her over the seething pit of darkness. A gleaming smile spread across the dark face.

"It is time for you to embrace your destiny, child," the voice once again intruded, causing the shadowy figure to hiss as its grin wavered. A white spark illuminated the darkness below, far beyond the grasping and howling beasts waiting to tear into her tender flesh. "Come to me, my child. Come through to me. Let not these fears hold you back, and come to your destined place."

"Not the cats again, papa. Please don't throw me in there again." She begged the shadowy figure that held her. Terror began to well up within her, feeding the darkness.

Laughing, the shadow dropped the struggling girl into the darkness. A heart wrenching scream, full of fear and betrayal erupted from her. "FATHER!"

For once, the light caught her instead of the dark. The Shadow howled in impotent fury as it vanished in a burst of sickly green light. The voice soothed her fears as the gentle arms held her small figure protectively. Her wounds, healed. Her bonds, released. It promised all would be well. Guidance would appear soon.

"Awaken, my dear child. Seek out your heritage. Remember your past. You must soon embrace your destiny, and be Reborn."

------------------------------

------ End Wildfire Chapter 02 ------


	4. Wildfire Chapter 3

DISCLAIMER: I lay no claim to characters from Ranma 1/2, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Ah! My Goddess! Or any other character of any other anime that may, inadvertently or not, be within this story. They are the property of their respective authors. Characters and situations from those series are used without their consent. This is a work of fanfiction for which I do not expect nor will accept compensation. This fiction is based upon Ranma 1/2, with strong influence from Ah! My Goddess and lesser cameos from the Sailors and possibly Tenchi. Ranma will not be a scout, related to a scout or have a prior engagement to a scout. Ranma will not be related to or engaged to Tenchi.

Champions of the 'true' fiancé probably won't like my portrayal of Akane or Shampoo. Ukyo gets off a little better, but she doesn't get lucky either. As it is a work of fanfiction, I am not trying to duplicate the canon Manga or Anime characters. Expect some (or a lot) of OOC.

--- Wildfire Chapter 03 ---

Ranma awoke with a start. She was lying under a tree in the park, not far from Furinken High. Clouds drifted overhead touched by the morning sun's brilliant rays. The sight calmed her, and seemed to give her a boost of energy. She had always enjoyed the mornings... Wait, that wasn't right. She usually slept in until the panda kicked her awake - him awake, or Akane dumped a bucket of water on him.

"Arrrgh!" Ranma exclaimed, as she rolled to her feet and looked about. Her pack was lying on the ground near her. Happosai was nowhere to be seen. "How did this get here? My pack should still be at the Tendo's." She put a hand to the back of her neck and scratched under her ponytail. "And where is the old freak? I owe him a pounding for fondling me like that," she grumbled. After looking around briefly, she shrugged. "Probably long gone by now."

How in the world had she wound up in the park? Oh. Just before she had totally lost her temper with the old freak, some strange girl appeared out of nowhere and introduced her hammer to Ranma's chin. Who was she, and - and why had she hammered her halfway across the district?

That girl had some serious strength to manage to knock her out for this long. Well, at least she had a restful night sleep. No nightmares... heck, no dreams at all as far as she could remember. Hmm, that was a definite plus. Perhaps she could persuade that crazy, hammer happy, non-fiancé girl to do it again. It had been months since she had as restful a night as that. Nah, she had just removed herself from one Hammer Air frequent flier plan, no sense in signing up for another.

Shrugging, Ranma lifted the pack to her back and started strolling out of the park, muttering. "Hmmm... what to do... what to do...? Who do I gotta see before I leave for good? Lessie. I told the Tendo's and the Amazons last night... Oh Man! Ucchan! I promised I would visit her." The redhead sprinted from the park and effortlessly took to the rooftops as she sped toward a certain okonomiyaki restaurant, never noticing the narrowed eyes that followed her path.

----------------------------------------

In the early dawn gloom within the dojo, a figure danced through a kata that emphasized strength and power over finesse and speed. The sound of snapping cloth accented the meaty smack of bare feet upon polished wood. After a time, the sweating figure completed its kata and slipped into a lotus position to meditate before continuing. A dark presence entered the trance like state with the figure.

"When will my vessel be ready, imotou-chan?"

"His despair and depression grow almost daily, oniisan. It can't be long now."

"I seem to remember hearing that before, imotou-chan."

"I... I was, overconfident, oniisan. I felt certain the death of his beloved would prepare him..."

"She lives still."

"I know. It is hard to believe, but true."

"You are attached to my vessel's chosen? I sense it imotou-chan. How could you let this happen?"

"And WHY shouldn't I, oniisan? She's perfect! She embraced my Fury as her own. With a bit more time and effort, she could become my first true disciple in millennia!"

"And what then of me, imotou-chan. Do you plan to leave me here to rot in this prison for yet another millennia?"

"... No ... Of course not, oniisan. But..."

"But, What?"

"The Norns are in the area again, oniisan. I have had to keep a low profile for the past month. It was only after I felt her fury peak again last night that I dared return."

"Bah! They are not warriors! Even YOU could defeat them!"

"Grrrr... and just WHAT is THAT supposed to mean, Zetsubo? Hmpf! For that remark, you can stay in there ANOTHER month for all I care!"

"Gekido! Wait just a seco..."

Standing, the figure stalked over to another part of the dojo and knelt before its target. Uttering the first sound of the morning, the figure shattered a stack of cinder blocks with a loud "Kyah!" as the crimson aura of rage flared and abruptly vanished.

The figure blinked and raised the dust covered hand to stare at it a moment before looking around in confusion.

----------------------------------------

Ukyo Kuonji sat morosely at the bar to her grill staring at the enameled top. "He promised. I believed him," she thought to herself, over and over. Nabiki had come around last night, just after she had closed, looking for Ranma. She had even told Ukyo some of what happened that evening after she left, without charging her. Ranma was gone. Some strange girl had appeared and hammered him and Happosai away from the Tendo compound.

Happosai had been found unconscious, battered and burned, in the practice field at Furinken High. He was recovering, albeit slowly, at the hospital. The staff had been warned of his... tastes. Of Ranma, the others had found no trace. There hadn't even been an impact crater. All his usual hangouts were searched without luck. Ucchan's had been the last, apparently at Kasumi's insistence.

"Ukyo-san?" Konatsu's voice broke into her reverie. She looked up at the effeminate kuonichi 'waitress'. "Have you been here all night?"

"He promised. I believed him," she said softly.

The cross-dresser glided over to the girl and helped her to her feet. "You need to get some rest, Ukyo-san. Ranma-sama has never failed to keep his word. He would not be likely to start now."

"I should have gone out after him. Once I heard... once... but he PROMISED ME!" she cried out and clung to her... friend. "...he promised." She sobbed into his shoulder as he swept her into his arms and awkwardly carried the exhausted girl upstairs and put her in bed.

She awoke hours later to the sounds of bustling activity below. The door chime rang, and a girl's cheerful voice called a greeting. Curious, she quickly freshened up and hurried downstairs. As she neared the dining room, she heard the girl again.

"No sir, I'm just filling in temporarily. Ukyo-san needed a break. She'll be down shortly." Was that Ranchan?

"Why, thank you sir! As I said, I am just filling in. The real worker of magic at this grill is Ukyo-san." The voice was right, but not the attitude. Ukyo reached the bottom of the stairs, and her jaw dropped. Standing behind her grill, wearing one of her aprons, cooking several okonomiyaki, stood Ranma in his cursed form.

As she watched, the boy turned girl skillfully flipped the grilled okonomiyaki onto the serving plates, her spatulas spinning and clicking with skill of an expert of the art of the hibachi grill. Konatsu breezed by and retrieved the prepared orders. She followed the kuonichi with her eyes, as he served several tables.

"Good afternoon, Ukyo-san!" the redhead's incredibly cheerful voice called to her. Her head snapped back toward the grill, eyes wide in shock, even if she managed to keep her mouth closed. "The lunch rush is almost over. Do you want to take over the grill?" When Ukyo numbly shook her head, the redhead continued, "OK then, have a seat, and I'll fix a 'Sunshine Special' for you."

"Right this way, Ukyo-san" Konatsu spoke from beside her. She jerked in surprise, startled by his sudden appearance. After seating her, Konatsu resumed his rounds. Within a few minutes, it became obvious that Ranma was doing a remarkable job keeping up with the lunch rush. All the time he had spent as a waitress at the Nekohaten had apparently paid off. He could read the short order tabs, and his speed training and raw martial arts talents helped with the preparations. Also, he must have actually been paying attention to her when she cooked for him. His skill at her art was apparent from the pleased reactions of the patrons.

Konatsu glided over to her table bearing a steaming plate and a tumbler of water. As he set it down, Konatsu said, "I hope you like spicy meals, Ukyo-san. She made one for me as well, and it is very good. You will need the water."

The okonomiyaki Ranma had prepared steamed in front of her. The delicious aroma made her mouth water. Arranged in a starburst pattern were assorted yellow and orange vegetables... most of them some form of pepper. As promised, it was good, almost as good as her own. It was well seasoned. Not quite as spicy as raw wasabi, but close.

"Not bad at all." She murmured between sips on her water. 'When has Ranma ever practiced my art?' she thought. 'Did he learn this just by watching me?'

Twenty minutes later, most of the lunch rush had departed, allowing Ukyo and Konatsu to clean up. With Ranma's help, the chore was completed in record time. This gave them all a chance to rest up before beginning preparations for dinner. Konatsu shooed the other two away, and made himself busy elsewhere, allowing them to talk.

"What happened last night, Ranma?" Ukyo began, "Nabiki stopped by, after I closed, looking for you. I - I wanted to go out and look too, but..." Her expression of worry was plain enough for Ranma to see.

"I don't remember what happened, exactly. That old pervert was groping me, then I remember hearing a strange voice shout something. I turn just in time to catch a hammer on the jaw. Then, I was waking up in the park this morning. I don't even remember having any dreams last night." She shook her head and grinned wryly as she continued, "The strange thing is, the blow wasn't that hard. It shouldn't have knocked me off my feet, much less across the district. Well, at least I got a restful sleep out of it."

"Nabiki said they searched all the parks, Ranma," Ukyo protested. "Why didn't they find you?"

"I don't know." Ranma shrugged, then gestured toward the floor. "First thing I did after I woke up was come here. I did promise you I would."

"I - I waited up all night for you, Ranma..."Ukyo said softly.

Ranma nodded slowly, "Konatsu told me that, or I would have awakened you. He had just put you to bed when I got here, however, so we agreed you needed the sleep more. Besides, I'm still here, aren't I?" she finished with another bright grin.

"You should have awakened me!" Ukyo pouted, her expression mixed with a bit of annoyance about having to wait to see her fia... her friend.

"No." Ranma replied firmly as she shook her head slowly. "You needed your rest. I am sorry you felt it necessary to stay up like that, but thank you all the same. It makes me feel better knowing that you still care for me." Her smile seemed to brighten the entire diner. "At least I know someone cares for me."

"Of course I care! You know how I feel about you!"

Konatsu padded over with a tea set. Tripping at the last minute, the contents of the tray landed in Ranma's lap. She let out a startled shriek and wound up dancing beside the table, her clothes steaming. "Ite! Hot! Hot!"

Ukyo and Konatsu stared at the redhead, both in shock, although for different reasons.

"Please forgive me, Saotome-san..."

"R-ranchan?! You didn't change...?"

Ranma closed her eyes as a warm golden aura surrounded her. More steam billowed from her clothes, as the smell of damp cloth became even more apparent. A few seconds later, the steam and glow faded, and she opened her eyes, smiling. "Ahhh! Much better!"

"Ranchan...?" Ukyo stared at her in shock. She had seen strange marks appear on Ranma's face briefly before the aura and steam blocked them from view.

"I'm sorry Ucchan. This is a result of what happened last night. When Mister Saotome refused to release his son from the pledges made for him without his knowledge or approval, Ranma Saotome chose to lock away his male form."

"Why are you speaking of yourself like that, Ranma?"

The redhead smiled sadly. "I no longer am Ranma Saotome. Legally, I was removed from the Saotome register over a month ago. Today, it became official. Last night, Mister Saotome and Mister Tendo rejected my request that the engagement to any Tendo should be ended. So, by refusing to be the instrument by which the honor of the Tendo family is destroyed, I ceased being Ranma Saotome. Ranma, the Ranma you know, for all intents and purposes, died at Jusendo. He gave his life in exchange for that of the youngest Tendo. The person before you now is what remains."

"B-but... what about our engagement..." Ukyo whined softly.

Ranma sighed as she stared hard at Ukyo. Bowing deeply at the waist, she responded, "I am truly sorry Kuonji-san. I cannot honor any of the agreements made by Genma Saotome for his son. If I were to honor one agreement, I would also have to honor all the other agreements, including the one with the Tendo family." She maintained the bow as her hands clenched into fists.

"I, I'm sorry Ranma. Force of habit. Please, sit with me." Ukyo's expression as Ranma stood from her bow was pensive.

With apparent effort, the redhead relaxed and continued. "It was the only option I could see to ensure that no one's honor was insulted, Ukyo." Ranma returned to her seat opposite the chef. "By placing one person's or family's honor above another, that could only result in dishonor for all involved. The panda never bothered to worry about other people's honor. 'Anything Goes' so long as it kept him fed or out of immediate danger." She growled out.

"I have no respect for him. Any agreement he made lacked honor. It is small consolation, but my life has been ruined, much as your has, by Genma. Besides, I thought we had already agreed to be friends again... not fiancés. Has that changed?" she turned a sad face up to gaze calmly into Ukyo's eyes.

Ukyo couldn't bear the thought of thought of Ranma being sad. "No," she said after a moment. "Honestly, I will always prefer to have been your wife. But, I would rather be a friend than a stranger."

"Thank you, Ukyo - Ucchan." the redhead said, a bright smile once again in place. "That means more to me than anything else."

"What should we call you now?" Konatsu asked as he started gathering the scattered tea service.

Ranma blinked and looked at the kuonichi. "I - haven't given it much thought actually. I've been too busy with other things to even consider them. I guess I was hoping I would be able to put my name back on the Saotome clan register." She sighed and moved to help the kuonichi in the kitchen. "My mother... that is, Missus Saotome... may be willing to help. But I cannot count on it. I guess that I have no family now." She paused in thought for a moment, before brightening and saying, "If you like, you can call me Haisano."

"Fire Talent, eh? Does that have anything to do with your hair color?"

Ranma shugged without comment and returned the smile.

Ukyo remained silent for a moment, then quietly asked, "Would you consider joining the Kuonji family? We could be sisters."

The redhead looked at her friend for a moment. Emotions warred across her features, clearly visible to Ukyo. Joy, Anger, Happiness, and Sorrow fought briefly for dominance, only to be replaced by a calm expressionless mask. The lack of expression Ukyo immediately did not like.

"For now, I must decline you very generous offer," Ranma replied carefully. "Even if your father would agree... No. I'd best not impose." She held up a hand to forestall the protest Ukyo was about to voice. "That would be too much like agreeing to one of the Panda's agreements. The insult to the other families' honor would then have to be avenged. I am not prepared to bring that upon your family Ukyo-san. I am grateful for the offer, nonetheless." Ranma concluded with another of her bright smiles.

The two chatted for a few hours. Finally, Ranma stood. "Thanks Ucchan. Your friendship means a great deal to me." When Ukyo stood, she found herself enveloped in a hug from the smaller girl. She happily returned it until she felt Ranma pull away. "I'd better leave now. Word that I am here is bound to have gotten out by now. The last thing I want is to wreck your place, again, while defending myself. I will write when I can."

Ukyo fought back the tears that threatened to blur her vision as she watched her childhood friend and fiance... no. She watched her NEW friend gather her pack and leave. Only after the redhead was safely out the door and down the street, did Ukyo allow herself to cry.

----------------------------------------

Ranma walked briskly through Nerima, drawing startled stares from those who knew her, and lustful stares from those who did not. She decided to keep to the streets, so that word would spread that she was in fact leaving. Perhaps that would keep the lunatics and amazons away from Ucchan. She never had heard from Cologne whether she would accept the 'New Ranma' as a sister to Shampoo. Whoever that girl was with the hammer had made sure of that.

What is it with girls and blunt instruments anyway? Akane had her mallet and Ukyo, her bakers peel. Well, the spatulas could also be used as edged weapons, but she also used it as a giant paddle often enough. Shampoo loved her Bonbouri and Kodachi... Kodachi had her Rhythmic Gymnastics clubs, among other things.

Her mother... Nodoka Saotome that is... always carried a katana. But she was a woman, not a girl. Perhaps with maturity came the graduation from the blunt trauma weapons to something more elegant. No, wait... Cologne had that staff of hers. There went that theory. Also, Ryoga had his umbrella. Ranma snickered. If the theory had held true, that would mean Ryoga was really a little girl at heart, instead of a pig.

Still, it was possible that she would need to choose a weapon, especially if she was to lead a life as a girl for now. That thought was not very appealing though. She was skilled with most martial arts weapons, but choose not to rely upon one. Her fa... that is to say, Genma had drilled Ranma endlessly about how weapon users were weaker than 'pure' practitioners of the art. Ranma didn't believe a word of it, especially after her visit to the Mazaki shrine. Still, it was still going to take some time to work through that conditioning. After all, if she were to be the greatest martial artist of her generation, she would need to become the greatest in armed styles as well as unarmed. Limiting herself to purely unarmed styles was exactly that, a limitation. How can anyone be 'the best' with a limitation like that? Aside from that, since it is common knowledge that Ranma scorned weapons and weapons users, what better way to throw off any pursuit than by becoming a weapon user.

Her thoughts were interrupted as she became aware of a familiar presence approaching. Looking about, she spotted a limousine drawing up along the edge of the crowded street. It stopped a short distance from her, allowing the passenger in the rear to get out. She sighed in frustration as she looked upon Tatewaki Kuno. She studied him carefully, as she continued along, her pace unchanged.

Instead of his usual hakima and bokken, he was attired in a western style sports jacket and slacks. Most unusual however were his actions. Instead of charging at her, yelling out his exuberant cries of affection, he merely stood in place, calmly awaiting her approach. No weapons were anywhere in sight.

This was an unexpected change from the young man. Ranma was tempted to turn and avoid the encounter entirely, but he was on the most convenient route to the transit rail station. He seemed more intent on speaking to her, than any of his usual activities. As she neared, she focused more of her attention on feeling out his mood. His ki was highly troubled, but not aggressive. He seemed, worried, although his expression remained difficult to see. He held his gaze low as he stared at the ground in before him. Her curiosity got the better of her. Besides, it was just as likely that she would finally get him to leave her alone.

He looked up at her as she neared to within a few meters. She was expecting a lecherous leer, or an arrogant sneer. Instead, as with the meeting last night, he appeared calm and sincere. "Ranma Saotome, I beg your indulgence and a favor. Would you be willing to hear me out?"

This stopped Ranma in her tracks as she looked up him. She cocked her head to the side as she studied the older young man. He certainly looked like Kuno. His voice sounded like Kuno. The words were not those of Tatewaki Kuno. Kuno never had asked for anything, nor had he ever called her by her former name when she was a girl.

Apparently taking her silence as assent, he continued. "Although I would prefer to discuss this in a more private locale, I can understand and accept why that may not be acceptable to you. If you are willing, I would ask that we take advantage of the privacy afforded by my vehicle. In return for the chance to speak to you, my driver will take you wherever you wish in Tokyo." He stopped speaking and looked at her hopefully.

She stared into his eyes thoughtfully for a moment without changing her expression. Finally, she spoke softly. "You would finally call me by that name only now that I may have to give it up." She watched as a brief flash of pain flickered across his features.

"I felt it counterproductive to call you by any other name I have used in the past. I do not wish to compound my errors. I would consider it a great honor to know how you wish to be addressed"

Ranma looked the young man over closely. His expression was hopeful, and his ki matched it. After a moment she responded, carefully, "For now, you may call me Haisano."

His eyes widened, as he became very excited. "Hai - Haisano-sama!" He bowed deeply to her. "I humbly ask you accept my apology. I deeply regret my actions of the past. Know that neither my sister nor myself will trouble you as we have in the past. Indeed, should you ever need our assistance, in any matter, we are yours to command."

Stunned, Ranma could only stare at the older Kuno as he very nearly prostrated himself at her feet. "That's... very, uhhh, nice, Kuno," she managed. "A-apology accepted."

Kuno straightened and smiled warmly at her. "Thank you, milady. You set my soul at ease."

-----------------------------------------------------

A few hours later, a bemused Ranma sat in the back of Kuno's limousine. Where she had come up with the name Haisano, she wasn't sure. Wherever it came from, it felt right. Ukyo had apparently thought it a bit odd, but it certainly had excited Tatewaki Kuno for some reason. He seemed releaved to hear that name. Why or how it held any importance for the older teen, she did not yet know.

For the last few hours, they had ridden around the district as he babbled on about various things. She tuned him out for the most part. His comments about destiny and past lives grabbed her attention, however. She certainly hadn't expected a person like Kuno to believe in reincarnation, what with his constant proclamations of 'The Vengeance of Heaven.' Wouldn't that make him Christian? Oh, right. Christianity has one God. Tatewaki wasn't calling her an angel all the time, but a Goddess. How confusing.

She had been ready to discount what he was saying as the usual Kuno ravings and tune him out again, but when he started to describe a dream he had, she had listened closer. It was strange, but he had recounted the beginning of her recent nightmares almost verbatim, if from a different perspective. He went on about fighting side by side with the 'Fiery Goddess.' as she fought in the defense of his people at some sacred valley.

She snapped out of her daze when she realized someone was asking her a question. "Huh?"

"Where would you like to go, milady?" asked an older man, from the front of the car she found herself in. Her gaze snapped about, looking for Kuno, before she realized she was alone in the back of the vehicle.

"Oh." nodding once, she gave the address to the Saotome home.

"Thank you, milady. Please sit back and enjoy the ride." He maneuvered the large vehicle out into traffic. "There are refreshments available, please help yourself."

-------------------------------------

Tatewaki Kuno watched the black car pull away from the curb with a broad smile on his face, before turning and strolling up the street, a jaunty bounce to his steps.

Atop the building across the street, a short figure turned and vanished into the shadows.

----------------------------------------------

Ranma thanked the driver as he held the door open for her. Hefting the pack that he had found far too heavy to budge, she walked up to the rebuilt Saotome residence. She stood nervously in the shadow of the entry gate for a few minutes. Something felt wrong here.

Glancing back, she saw the driver waiting patiently by the front of his vehicle. No, he wasn't the problem. After a moment, the feeling faded. Shrugging, she pulled on the bell, announcing her presence. The feeling was probably a result of her anxiety over meeting her mother. Would she accept the 'new Ranma,' or not?

Moments later, the door opened, revealing Nodoka Saotome, dressed in her usual kimono. The only difference was, she wasn't carrying the family blade. "Of course, baka," Ranma thought, "she's home, she doesn't need to carry it here."

"Yes? May I help..." Nodoka began, then shrieked "RANMA!" She grabbed her 'son' by the arm and said. "Come in, son! I've been so worried about you." As she pulled the young girl inside, she glanced around nervously, her eyes falling upon the limo and driver. A frown creased her face before she closed the door firmly. Turning, she looked over the red-head for a moment. Her expression changed minutely as her frown deepened and her eyes narrowed slightly.

"Where have you BEEN? Do you know how we have worried for you?" she asked as she led Ranma deeper into the house, never once releasing her grasp on the cursed boy's arm. "I heard from Nabiki that another challenger attacked you last night."

"Well, I'm not sure where to start..." Ranma began before Nodoka interrupted her.

"Ah! Wait just a moment, Ranma, and I'll have some hot water ready for you." She released Ranma and hurried into the kitchen. The young martial artist followed slowly after setting her pack down. The nagging feeling that something was wrong would not go away.

Taking a small glass carafe over to her electric teapot, the kind that held a reserve of water heating at all times, she emptied the water into the top. Seconds later, the near boiling water poured into the waiting carafe below the empty filter basket. Ranma nodded appreciatively. One of those would have made life simpler at the Tendo home.

"Ummm, " Ranma began again, "I don't know how to say this, but I... that is, you see... " She sputtered and stumbled over the subject as Nodoka diluted the hot water, bringing the temperature down from scalding, to merely hot.

"Let's just put you back in your proper form, shall we?" Nodoka said cheerfully as she poured part of the water over the dithering redhead. "Now then, my son, where have... you... been...?" She trailed off, staring at the redhead. Her gaze switched back to the water. Steaming. Check. She poured more over the girl before her. Wet, steaming girl. "Wha - what has happened to you, Ranma? Why don't you change back?" She asked, a worried frown replacing the nervous smile she'd had moments before.

Ranma sighed as she used the technique she had developed to dry off as she had at Ucchan's. "I am sorry, Saotome-san. This happened last night." she said this without even a hint of regret in her voice. "Hot water will have no effect on me..." she silently added, 'unless I want it to, or a lot more than a single pot is used.'

"WHAAAT!" Nodoka shrieked at her. The pleasant woman vanished, like a dream. In her place stood a raging demon head that would make Suon a little envious. "How did this happen? How could you LET this happen?"

"Woah!" Ranma yelped, as she jumped back a few feet. "I hardly just LET this happen! In order to maintain the honor of several families, I believe I had no choice! Will you let me explain?" She stepped further back and to the side, moving nearer her pack, just in case. The 'out of place' feeling was getting stronger.

Chest heaving, Nodoka glanced at the shattered remains of the tea pot in her hands before turning her smoldering gaze back to the unwanted girl form in front of her. "Yes, 'SON,' I do believe you should explain this."

Ranma took a deep breath, then began. "Family honor is extremely important to you. Am I correct?"

"Of course it is! How does that explain..." she gestured sharply several times at Ranma's chest, "THIS?"

"Please, hear me out." At the woman's curt nod, Ranma continued, "Is the Saotome family honor more important than the Tendo family honor, or the Kuonji family honor, or that of any of the other families I am promised or have been sold to?"

"So, that's what this is about," Nodoka hissed. "You know that the other engagements are of no value! They have already been dealt with. As far as the Kuonji are concerned, that engagement had equal standing with the Tendo due to the dowry already claimed by Genma. However, her disgraceful actions at the wedding nullify that claim. Your only valid fiancé is Akane Tendo," she declared. "Now, WHY IS THIS PERMANENT?"

"Before the enforced wedding," Ranma continued, "you had left me the choice of marrying a violent maniac because of a drunken promise by your honor-less husband, or a girl I consider a friend, and nothing more. That was no choice."

"It was your DUTY to choose. When you failed to do so, it fell to ME to choose for you." Nodoka snapped.

"Y-YOU chose!" Ranma gasped, stunned. She hadn't known that her moth... that is, Nodoka had chosen to force the wedding. "Have you any idea what you have done?" Ranma asked in a small, sad voice.

"I have undertaken necessary steps to ensure the continuation of this family. Your indecision threatened that. Obviously, the choice had to be made for you since you refused to take that responsibility upon yourself."

"Yes," Ranma cried, "I refused! I refused to partake in soiling the honor of any family by forcing them to join with any family containing an honor-less thief like Genma Saotome. He has destroyed any honor the Saotome clan may have held many times over the past decade."

Nodoka's face turned ashen as she practically growled, "You will marry Akane. You no longer have a choice!" she stalked over to the racked honor blade, snatching it up off the supports and turned to face the redhead. "Too much depends on the joining of our clans for you to simply choose not to! I will NOT allow you to marry that, that, gaijin bimbo, or that low born cook's daughter!"

Ranma sighed as picked up her pack. "I will not marry any of the girls. I will deal with Xian Pu and the other Amazons. However, I will not, now or ever, marry anyone based on a promise by Genma Saotome. If I marry at all, it will be by MY choice. Furthermore, because all the promises Genma made were for his son to marry into the families, I removed Ranma from the family register, marking him deceased. Without the son on which all those engagements were based, Genma's honor-less promises cannot harm any more than the Saotome name. That name, he has already destroyed. Will you support my decision?" Ranma asked, her tone of voice pleading. "Will you allow me to be your daughter and help me restore the honor of the Saotome name?"

"NO!" Nodoka nearly shouted, "The future of the family demands you continue the Tendo-Saotome family legacy. You MUST marry Akane! If you do not, then you are no child of mine!"

"Why?" Ranma pressed, her voice quavering with barely suppressed anguish. "WHY must it be Akane? What is so important that you would force your own child into a loveless marriage? Why force the two of us to marry when we cannot even talk to each other anymore? Why not Kasumi, or even Nabiki? They are Tendo as well."

"It is not your place to question our reasons! Do you intend to prove yourself to be just like Genma?" the Saotome Matriarch sneered, "He never kept his word of honor. How are you any different if you run from this, and, and, hide as a girl?"

"I am nothing like Genma." Ranma snapped. She paused before continuing in a calmer voice, almost to herself. "It is amazing. You admit that Genma Saotome has no honor, yet you expect his worthless promises to be honored." Shaking her head, she looked into Nodoka's eyes and asked, "Are you trying to ensure a repeat of your marriage with Genma? Forcing Akane and I together would probably result in exactly that. At best, the relationship would be like yours, dysfunctional. At worst... "

"How dare you say that! You presume too much!" Nodoka hissed, the color that had drained from her face returned in a brilliant flush. "Get out! GET OUT OF MY HOUSE! YOU are NOT welcome here until you return as my SON!"

Ranma sighed and nodded. "Saotome-san, you should know that I have already renounced the Saotome name. I had hoped you would see past this and allow me to be your daughter, even if I could no longer be your son." She stared hopefully into the older woman's eyes. After a short moment, the hope faded, and resignation replaced it. "Very well, as you wish. I am no longer your son, or even a man, Saotome-san. I renounced my male gender last night along with the Saotome name. Now I renounce any relation to you. Seek out Genma Saotome for an explanation as to why your son became your daughter, if you can find the coward. Look to your own actions here and now as to why she is now a stranger to you."

She moved for the door, passing the trembling crimson-faced woman.

Upon reaching the door, she turned and bowed toward Nodoka without looking at her. "Thank you for inviting me into your home, Saotome-san. I leave it as I entered it, alone. G-good-bye Nodoka Saotome." Stone faced, the young martial artist backed out of the Saotome residence.

--------------------------------------------

The chauffeur patiently awaited his passenger by the limousine. He had not been dismissed as yet, so it was likely that the young lady would need his services again before this evening was through. Looking around the neighborhood, he noticed several people retreating from the streets, casting worried glances toward the home the young lady was visiting.

He hadn't been waiting even five minutes before the front door once again opened. His passenger strode quickly down the path and out the gate. She stopped just outside the gate, her gaze finally reaching him. Bowing, he asked, "Is there another destination to which I may drive you, Milady?"

"I - I thought you were only going to give me one ride," she said. Her emotionless voice matched her stony expression. The cheerful young lady that had entered this residence was gone. In her place, stood this somber teenager. The chauffeur wondered what could have happened to cause this reaction in such a short amount of time.

Opening the passenger door, he replied, "I am in your service for as long as you you desire it, Milady" Seeing her hesitation, he added, "Compliments of Milord Kuno."

"Well..." his charge began before turning her head to look back at the Saotome home. She frowned as her eyes narrowed. Before he could say anything further, she muttered softly, "Why do most of the women in my life all have to be so angry all the time?"

"Milady?" he asked, hoping to get the young woman to open up once more. 'What did that woman do to this child?' he asked in the privacy of his own thoughts.

She sighed. as she continued to stare at the house. He couldn't help but overhear as she began muttering to herself. "This part of my life is over. Time to move on. There is nothing remaining here for me... except Ucchan." she turned and stared at his limousine. "May as well take Tatewaki-kun up on his offer..."

She blinked a few times, and the stony expression changed into one of puzzlement as she continued to mutter, " Tatewaki-kun? What? Oh, to heck with it." Shaking her head, she looked up at him and smiled slightly. While it was not the brilliant, cheerful grin she had given him when they arrived here, it was a positive change.

"Thank you. I do have a few more places to visit today." She said accepting the offered ride.

The chauffeur slid in behind the wheel and moved the limousine into traffic. A few moments later, after she had settled, she gave him the next destination. After he acknowledged the order, he saw her turn her face to the window where the light caught on twin tracks glistening wetly on her face.

--------------------------------------------

Shortly after the large black vehicle disappeared down the street, Nodoka Saotome exited her home carrying her familiar wrapped bundle. After looking around carefully, she frowned when failing to spot her 'son.'

Had anyone with the Sight been nearby, they would have clearly seen the dark crimson marks burning over her eyes like a second set of eyebrows. Those without the sight were easily able to spot the look of rage that washed over her face.

Turning, she hurried down the street toward the bus station. Catching up to her wayward offspring would be difficult, but not impossible.

--------------------------------------------

Mercury looked up briefly as two of her teammates, Sailors Jupiter and Mars, landed near her.

"Well?" demanded Jupiter. "Where's the Youma?"

Mercury looked back at her computer before responding. "Whatever it was is no longer here."

"What?" Looking around, Jupiter planted her hands on her hips. "Aww, man," she whined. "I was so looking forward to a good fight."

Mars chose that time to speak up. "I - I don't think it was a Youma, Jupiter" She looked about with an uncharacteristic trepidation.

Mercury nodded. "I concur. Although there was a fair amount of Negaverse energy here, two other energy signatures are present. These other energy traces seem diametrically opposed and are canceling each other out as we speak. The darker one seems far stronger than any Youma."

The senshi of the Red Planet quietly added her own comment, "A Demon."

"A-a DEMON?" smirked Jupiter. "So, Mercury, what is the other energy source? A God?" her tone was somewhat sarcastic.

After a moment of searching the computer's database, Mercury looked back up at her teammate. "The data is inconclusive. The second signature was either not as strong as the first or was masking its power. As I was unable to detect it until we arrived, I presume the latter. Also, considering the lack of damage, I must conclude that whatever generated these energy signatures did not engage in direct conflict here."

A low chime rang from the little hand held computer, drawing Mercury's attention once more. Her eyebrows raised slightly at what her screen was showing her. "However, there is a correlation between these energy signatures and the signatures I detected in Nerima last month. The signatures are a 91.3 match."

"Hi, Guys!" A cheerful voice called out as another girl in a sailor fuku arrived.

Mars glared at the new arrival and growled out, "Bout time you showed up meatball head!"

"You are so mean!" Sailor Moon wailed. "I couldn't just leave in the middle of dinner! I got here as fast as I could."

"Hmpf! Whatever," the Senshi of Fire snorted. Returning her attention to Sailor Mercury, she asked. "There is a massive amount of ki in the area, it's very focused on the emotion of rage. Nobody could produce that much negative ki without being a Youma or worse. Is that one of these 'signatures' of yours?"

"It is certainly likely." Mercury replied after a moment. "I cannot verify which one, but if your feelings are correct, then it would be logical to assume that the stronger source was this 'negative ki' you mention."

Calming as quickly as she had burst into tears, Sailor Moon looked around and asked. "Where's Sailor Venus?"

--------------------------------------------

Minako Aino, sometimes known as Sailor Venus, self proclaimed Senshi of Love, looked about her in confusion. She had been following this incredible hunk of a guy, trying to figure out a way to accidentally meet him on purpose.

Her communicator had beeped, distracting her for a moment. When she looked back up, he was gone. Desperate to get another look at him, she had searched for several more minutes before giving up once more. After giving up the search, she realized she had no idea of where she was.

Just as she had identified her surroundings, her communicator beeped again. Sighing, she lifted the little device. They would never believe her.

--------------------------------------------

Sailor Moon was grinning from ear to ear as Minako's confused face appeared on the little screen of the communicator. "Your laaaate!" she sang before the other girl could respond.

Minako looked embarrassed as she replied. "You're not going to believe this, but... I saw this really cute guy." She started to get a dreamy look in her eyes, "He was such a porkchop!" she appeared to be about to say more before hearing the collective groan of the senshi interrupted her. "What?"

"D-don't you mean beefcake?" Jupiter asked.

"Well, I suppose you could say it that way, too," the blond said as she shook herself out of her daze. "But, that's not important," she frowned at the looks of shock from the other senshi. "What?"

"You, just said a cute guy wasn't important!" Jupiter cried.

"Yes, well, I was following him when you guys called the first time. You made me loose him," she accused, "after nearly an hour of following him!"

"So, where are you! We might have needed you here, you know." Mars demanded suddenly from over Moon's shoulder.

Minako blushed as she replied. "I... uhmmm... got lost. But, I finally figured out where I am when you called this time."

"So, where are you?" Mars asked.

Blushing even harder, Minako looked away from the communicator as she muttered something.

"Where?" Moon asked again, as she turned up the volume.

"Kyoto."

A moment of silence claimed the area before the shout of disbelief startled birds into the air, and rattled windows for blocks.

--------------------------------------------


	5. Wildfire Chapter 4

DISCLAIMER: I lay no claim to characters from Ranma 1/2, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Ah! My Goddess! Or any other character of any other anime that may, inadvertently or not, be within this story. They are the property of their respective authors. Characters and situations from those series are used without their consent. This is a work of fanfiction for which I do not expect nor will accept compensation. This fiction is based upon Ranma 1/2, with strong influence from Ah! My Goddess and lesser cameos from the Sailors and possibly Tenchi. Ranma will not be a scout, related to a scout or have a prior engagement to a scout. Ranma will not be related to or engaged to Tenchi.

------ Wildfire Chapter 4 ------

The waters of the bath rippled as a glow developed deep within. The ripples quickly became a swirl, and then a miniature whirlpool formed with a column of light lancing toward the ceiling. Without a sound, a weary looking black haired girl arose from the shallow water and drifted out over the dry wood flooring of the bath chamber.

"I'm back," the girl called out.

"We're in here," was the faint reply.

Moments later, the young girl pulled open the door beside a sign labeled in kanji and english 'Tea Room,' and trudged wearily through.

"How was your night, Skuld?" Belldandy, the middle Norn and Goddess of the Present asked. "Did you find the bug you were looking for?"

Sighing, Skuld plopped down beside her older sister. "... no. I thought I had it this time. But, it was her again."

"Oh, dear," Belldandy exclaimed "You didn't, did you?"

Dropping her head, the younger Norn replied softly, "... yes."

"I-I see." Skuld's older sister said sadly. She watched the young Goddess of the Future for a moment before asking, "What did you do to help her?"

Skuld's tear filled gaze snapped back up to meet her older sister's calm eyes. "I couldn't find her again, Belldandy. When I got to the location of the bug, I tried to debug it. But somehow, it must have fooled my tracker. It made me hit her instead."

Belldandy nodded and urged her to continue.

"Well, when I hit her,somehow I hit her so hard, it knocked her out of the district. So, I followed. But when I got to the park where she was going to land, all I found was this, this, PERVERT."

"Oh, MY!" the older Norn exclaimed, "What happened?"

"Well..."

--------------------------------------------

Skuld was searching the park, looking for the red-head she had twice now been tricked by that fiendishly clever Alpha bug into attacking. According to her calculations, she should have landed right about... here.

"Akane-chan!" a voice exclaimed from the surrounding bushes. "I knew you would come to me."

With that... a withered barnacle of a letch latched onto Skuld, who, in shock, could only reply with a startled, "YeeeeEEEEEEK!"

--------------------------------------------

"Oh dear! What happened next imotou-chan"

"It was horrible, oniisama."

--------------------------------------------

"Eh? Your not my Akane-chan." the barnacle complained.

"YeeeEEEEEEEK!" Skuld cried again.

The barnacle dropped to the ground with a huff, not even bothering to look at her. "Ahh, my pretties!" It cooed, rubbing a silky white piece of cloth to its face.

"Yee...ERK!" Skuld's screams cut off abruptly as a flush of righteous anger grew upon her countenance.

"Who would have thought a little girl would have such a delightful pair of panties?" mused the barnacle, continuing to ignore the gathering storm known as Skuld.

"You-You, YOU P-PERVERT!" the offended Goddess of the Future screamed. "Neo-Skuld BOMB!"

--------------------------------------------

"Oh. Wasn't that a bit... no. On second though. He had that coming."

--------------------------------------------

Genma Saotome hitched his pack up a little higher as he trudged through the outskirts of Tokyo. It was time for another training trip, at least until he found a way to fix what the boy had done to himself. Nodoka would never let him live otherwise. She was scary. There was no other way to put it. She could be so kind and gentle one moment, and a complete and utter terror the next. Her family always had been a bit... off. Why was it that the boy couldn't thank him for taking him away from her?

No, best not think on it. The only side she has ever shown Ranma was her kind side... especially when Ranma was hiding as Ranko Tendo. Ranma never knew her as he did. The last year before the esca... errr.. trip had been nearly unbearable. The only peace he got was when he was with Ranma. Whenever they boy was taking a nap or out playing with the neighbor's kids, the torment continued. 'Clean up that mess. Eat like a civilized human being. Fix the leak in the roof. Carry the shopping bags.' But the worst was, 'Go get a job'. Sheesh. What did she think he was, anyway? Her family had money. It was one of the things he had married her for.

The last ten years had been utter bliss compared to the eight years of marriage before hand. Granted, the first two years of that, before they found she was pregnant with the boy, had been all he could ask for. A better wife, a man couldn't ask for. She was everything a woman should be. Attentive. Willing. Wonderful cook. Neat and thorough housekeeper. Obedient... had he mentioned willing?

Genma's mental list of his vision of a perfect wife was interrupted by someone barring his path.

"Going somewhere, Dearest?"

-------------------------------------------

"Milady?"

"Milady? We have arrived."

Haisano blinked and looked about. Sure enough, the limousine was parked a block from her destination.

"O-Ok. Thanks." the said, "This may only take a few minutes, but if its gonna be longer, I'll try to let ya know."

"I shall wait as long as you need me, Milady." The chauffeur replied, after opening the door for her.

"Just Haisano, please." she protested.

"Yes, Milady Haisano." the driver countered.

Shaking her head, Haisano walked down the street. She had tried to stop him from calling her 'Lady' and 'Milady' on the trip from the Saotome home, but to no avail. Stopping a short distance from her destination, she shrugged off the chauffeur's stubborn behavior and focused on her next actions. Before moving on, she slipped into Umi-senken.

--------------------------------------------

Khu Lon glanced up at the entrance to the Nekohaten as another customer entered and sighed before turning her gaze once more to the waiting tea. An entire day lost, waiting for him... No. Waiting for her. She had a fondness that bordered on the feeling of family ties to the egotistical martial artist.

Ranma was entirely too clever for his, or her, own good. There was no way the boy could have made it to China, acquired the Chiisuton and Kaisufuu from the Musk, and returned in only a month. A small smile tugged at her lips. The bucket had nothing to do with the Chiisuton anyway. It was, in fact, the ladle that was enchanted. The entire act of locking herself as female was a ruse, a grand trick upon that pathetic excuse for a father of his and all the other suitors for his hand -her hand.

Of greater interest was how Ranma had resisted the curse... and how long had his female form exhibited the marks of the gods? Khu Lon felt certain she was very familiar with Ranma. No one could spend as much time training a person of such talent as she had and not gain a sense of whom that person was. No, this had to be a recent development. But when? And, more importantly, how?

Jusendo was the key. It had to be. According to his own words to that Tendo girl, he had not had the strength to defeat Saffron. The fight with the Phoenix God had forced the young man to seek a greater power to enable his victory. A power that Ranma implied had slept in him since his first visit to Jusenkyo. But, how could that be? The records of Jusenkyo clearly indicated that Ranma fell into the Spring of Drowned Girl. That spring had been in near constant use by the Musk Dynasty for centuries, and none of their new 'brides' had become megami. If they had, then the Musk would not have lasted much beyond the first.

Only the Legendary First Spring, the Spring of Destiny, might have the power Ranma had described. That spring was where, according to legend, the Warrior Goddess, guardian of the early Amazon nation, fell to the treachery of the unspoken male warrior possessed by the demon Zetsubo Hagesii. It was this treachery that had resulted in there being no male allowed on the council of elders since.

Bah, the point was moot anyhow. According to the Jusenkyo records, the First Spring had dried up nearly a week before Ranma's entry into the book. That in and of itself was a relief. The entire village had celebrated for weeks once the news was out. With the spring gone before he even arrived there were no chance that Ranma could have fallen into it. Better still, with it gone, Zetsubo could not be released from his prison.

Perhaps ...no. It wasn't actually possible for him to have fallen into the Spring of Destiny, was it? Most people who fell into that spring took form closely reflecting their soul, as with that beast Taru. Some, however, took forms as close to the opposite as possible to the victim, such as Rogue. Genma had raised Ranma to be an arrogant male chauvinist, who also happened to be terrified of cats. It would only stand to reason that the Spring of Destiny would have turned him into an ugly, overweight, beast of a man in the first case, or a timid female cat-human creature in the other. But, the first truly didn't fit Ranma either. He may have been raised that way, but underneath all the crass arrogance and macho bravado, a caring and forgiving soul lay. Perhaps...

No, the only possibility was unthinkable. Were Ranma to have actually fallen in the Spring of Destiny, and somehow merged with the spirit of the springs, then that would mean Ranma would have to have been at Jusenkyo an entire week before he was recorded to have been. The Guide was very diligent with the records of the First Spring of the Pools of Sorrow. There is no way he would fail to record the fate of a new victim. Also, Ranma would have to have the reborn soul of the Goddess, otherwise, he could not have merged with the spirit of the spring...

Unfortunately, it was the only thing that made sense. If it were true, then the events of the prior evening could mean that Zetsubo was about to escape his prison. According to ancient lore, he could only get free if the magic of the Pools of Sorrow was gone. With the entire valley flooded after Jusendo, there was no safe means of determining whether or not the magic remained.

"I don't think I have ever seen you actually look worried before, elder Khu Lon." Commented an all too familiar voice, interrupting her thoughts. Startled as she had not been in years, Khu Lon could only stare at the girl that appeared from nowhere, standing at the other side of the table. No one else in the Cat Cafe reacted in any way at the girl's sudden appearance nor paid any attention the slight jerk of her own hands that resulted in a puddle of tea on the table.

"Honored elder. I apologize that unforeseen events prevented us concluding our business last night. I seek your decision." Ranma's tone remained low and calm, yet her eyes seemed to burn with an intensity that Khu Lon had never before seen in the child.

Slowly and calmly, Khu Lon wiped up the spill, filled two fresh cups on the table, and arranged them to allow Ranma to chose her own. "Please, join me for some tea, daughter."

--------------------------------------------

Haisano bowed politely to Kuno's driver. "Please extend my gratitude to Kuno-san for your services. They were greatly appreciated."

"I will do as you ask, Lady Haisano." The man bowed in return as he replied. "I am honored to have been of service. Are you certain you wish to stay here? Should I drop you off at a hotel perhaps?" he asked one last time, glancing at the City Park.

"No. Thank you, but no. I ..." she turned her head as she yawned massively. " I will be fine... I've spent years on the road with my fa... with Genma. I had to look out for myself then, I can do so again now." She had given up about midway through the journey on getting the man to drop the 'Lady' bit. She may have accepted the curse, but she still did not like the gender change, or the reactions of the people around her.

"As you wish, Lady Haisano." Bowing one final time, he returned to his vehicle, and carefully guided it once more into the light night traffic.

Sighing in relief, Haisano turned back to the entrance to the park, adjusted the strap to her backpack, and started in. After a few minutes of searching, she found a secluded spot to drop her pack for the night. She set up her portable stove and fished a small pot form her pack. After setting some water to heat over the tiny flame, she set aside the packet of instant ramen, waiting for the water to heat as she shivered slightly in the evening chill.

It was not the most nutritious or filling meal, but, for some reason, she just wasn't that hungry. She was, however, extremely tired. Ever since the sun set, it had been harder to stay awake in the back of the limousine for the return to Juuban. Not wanting to fall asleep and awaken back at the Kuno mansion, she had the driver drop her off, here, at one of the many parks in the Juuban Ward.

It was time to decide where to go from here. Her life up to this point had been a never-ending chain of challenges and combat. Whatever good it had done for her combat skills, it had a serious impact on her other skills. Whoever the spirit was that had come to her from the spring, she corrected some of that, but she still felt incomplete. It was as if pieces of her were still missing. It was a strange feeling. It was almost as if she was remembering things, that Ranma had never experienced while growing up. She felt far more complete than she had ever felt as Ranma... and yet... there was more that still seemed to be missing.

Perhaps the thing to do was to look for a place to finish her schooling. Even better, since she was basically starting anew and certainly looked young enough, she may even be able to go back and take some classes she had missed or not performed as well at over the last year.

Lost in her thoughts, her hands were left on autopilot, so to speak. With the skill and instinct born through the better part of two years, her right hand grasped the handle on the steaming pot of water... and upended it over her head. As tired as she was, she had long since ceased maintaining the curse lock technique. She shuddered under the familiar tingle of the change and then grunted the sudden but brief tightening of his clothes.

"Awww! What the heck did'ja do THAT for?" He groaned, annoyed at himself. After setting up the pot to heat some more water, he moved a few feet away, and reached for the technique he had used twice earlier that day. Immediately, he felt a difference. He was expecting only a trickle of warm power, as tired as she was. What he received was a frigid tsunami.

Instead of a the expected flash of warmth and steam, the temperature plunged around him in an instant. With a sound not unlike breaking glass, shards of ice formed about him and shattered in an instant from the intense chill. Ranma stared in shock at the glimmering motes of powdered water drifting about him in shock. The water he had intended to burn off into steam had frozen so rapidly and completely, it hadn't even set off the curse again.

"Whoa! What the...?" he broke off as he clamped down on the power, struggling to force it back and contain it once more. The cool blue-white glow of his aura illuminated the impromptu campsite clearly. A strange metallic pinging sound from his stove drew his attention. As he watched, the water in the pot solidified despite the efforts of the small gas stove. Shortly thereafter, when he recovered control enough to release the technique, the glow died. A cool fog formed in the clearing as a warm breeze that blew through carrying a flurry of snowflakes.

Wait a sec. Warm? Shaking his head, Ranma scratched the back of his neck under his short ponytail. Just a few moments ago, she had been shivering from the chill. Now the crisp evening air felt comfortable... even warm to him.

"This just keeps gettin weirder. That was even more intense than the soul of ice..." he muttered. Kneeling before the little camp stove, he closed his eyes to meditate while waiting for the water to heat once more. Perhaps some light could be shed on this. His eyes opened again as the puzzled look grew. Why wasn't he tired anymore? If anything, he could feel himself becoming more alert with each passing second.

His gaze turned toward the stars and the full moon hanging in the sky. As usual, their cool radiance calmed him as he thought over the events of the past few days. Closing his eyes once more, he settled into a light meditative state.

--------------------------------------------

Ryoga was lost. A simple fact. It was, unfortunately, a simple fact that was all to common to the young man. What was different this time was the fact he had no idea where he wanted to go either. Worse, no matter how hard he tried, or how long he walked, he continued to find this same park bench, under that same statue, near that same pond, by that same grove of trees with the blue light glowing in it.

"Huh?" Okay, that was new. As he watched, the blue light abruptly vanished. Looking around, he noticed no one else was nearby in the park. The other people were staying towards the far side, near the main entrance. He was probably the only person to see it.

Like a moth to a flame, and with as steady a course, the lost boy wandered into the grove to investigate. Moving carefully, and with all the stealth his stalking of that ronin had given him, at least when he wasn't charging through the brush in a blind fury, he crept through the grove with only a whisper of sound. The trees were not tightly packed, but the underbrush obscured most of this area from the remainder of the park. He finally got a good look at the figure kneeling between a small camp stove and a pup tent.

His eyes bugged out as he drew in the sight of Ranma... a MALE Ranma, meditating, his eyes closed and his hands relaxed in his lap, all while hovering more than six inches off the rippling blades of grass. Ryoga almost missed the faint marks glowing with a cool blue radiance upon the cowardly oathbreaker's face. This did cause him to pause for a moment... but only a moment.

--------------------------------------------

In a mid sized house in a well to do part of Juuban, a young teenage girl slept deeply, happily dreaming of one of her favorite things in the whole world, ice cream. Unfortunately for her, the dream was about to be interrupted.

Beep Beep!

"hrmm..." the girl rolled over and resumed chewing on her pillowcase.

Beep Beep!

Beep Beep!

"...usagi..." came the whispered voice of the moon cat.

Beep Beep!

"Usagi! Wake up!" A little louder that time. At least it got some response.

"Yes, Momma, I'll have the triple fudge..." but hardly the one sought after.

Beep Beep!

"USAGI!" The cat screeched from atop the pillow Usagi was chewing on.

"Aaak! Huh? Wha? Luna?" With an explosion of hair, elbows, and yet more hair, the young blonde bolted upright in bed.

Beep Beep!

"U...usagi...?" came the groan from the far side of the room.

"Awww! Not now Luna. It's the middle of the night. Can't I get some sleep?"

Beep Beep!

"...Oh..."

--------------------------------------------

Sailor Mercury, fought back the yawn as she followed the latest trace from her computer. This was the second time in one day that the Senshi were responding to a disturbance. Luckily, Minako had been able to catch the Shinkansen (bullet train) from Kyoto. Even on the high speed train, it had been more than a two hour trip for the misplaced scout. She had just arrived at the commuter rail station in Juuban when this latest disturbance erupted. It wasn't one of Beryl's Youma, of that Mercury was certain. No, this was something altogether different, more like the traces in Nerima and earlier today here in Juuban..

Her computer warbled a warning tone as a surge of power was detected ahead of Ami. She slid to a halt atop the roof as she glanced at the screen of her communicator. "It's in the park." She informed the rest of the team.

"Of course it is... Seesh it's ALWAYS in a park..." whined one of the Senshi... probably Moon.

"I... I'm almost there..." Mars began then screamed "WOAH!"

Ami's eyes were drawn to the sky by the sudden appearance of a green sphere of energy that shot up from the park. It hovered in the sky for a moment, casting a sickly green glow over the trees and rooftops, before plunging once more toward the ground. A flare of light erupted where it landed, followed seconds later by the sounds of an explosion and a tremor that shook windows and set of alarms for blocks.

"Mars?" Moon called, "Are you alright?"

Mercury started running towards the park once more.

"Mars?" Moon tried again, but there was no answer. "Mercury! Find Mars!"

Pausing once more in her run, Ami checked her computer, and replied, "She is at the north end of the park, at the opposite end of the park from the attack. She is not moving; however, the enemy appear to be ignoring her."

"Oh, No! Is she hurt? Everyone get to Mars, as quick as you can!"

Moments later, Mercury arrived to find the rest of the Senshi gathered around the sobbing figure of their teammate who, aside from her expression, appeared unharmed. "Is she alright, Sailor Moon?"

"I don't know, she keeps saying she's all alone, even though we're all right here."

"So dark, So lonely" moaned the black haired Senshi of Fire.

--------------------------------------------

A pair of flaming green eyes blazed in the unending darkness. A vague form, the silhouette of a man, hovered in the dark, outlined by a dim glow of a similar hue. Before it, a barrier shimmered like the surface of a sunlit pond as viewed from below. Beyond, a distorted image of the mortal realm danced, taunting the figure with occasional glimpses of crystal clarity. Over the millennia, as the number of mortals in the world grew once more, the barrier had weakened. His power grew in proportion to the number of mortals, while the power that held him trapped was fading at an increasingly rapid rate. If it had been this weak a mere five decades prior, he would have been free then. That last wondrous slaughter of mortals by mortals had given him an unexpected surge of power. Enough power contact Gekido for a time.

But, as with all things, the war came to an end. The vast stream of power faded, and once more, the barrier was as good as impregnable. Having learned from that experience, he has been carefully hoarding his strength, keeping it instead of wasting it in what had been futile efforts to breach the barrier. Recently, less than a half a year past, a mere blink in the time he had suffered here, the barrier weakened enough for him to restore contact with Gekido following the death of that fool Saffron.

She was to pave the way for his return. She was to find a host for himself. She found a host for herself soon enough, and claimed to have one for him, yet, the time was not right. The host was not prepared. Her attempts at placing the host in a suitable frame of mind met with continuous failure. When she wasn't working on the host she had selected for him, she wandered off to other projects of her own. Like now...

"Gekido, what are you up to now?" He wondered. "You have invaded yet another body while you leave me to rot here. I shan't forget this slight, dear sister. Oh, no. I shan't forget. But wait! What is this?"

Waving a hand, He altered the pattern of the ripples with practiced ease, shifting the view slightly. "Ahhh! The emotion! Where?" Another gesture shifted the view again. "Yes, my pet! Again. Show me where you are... so pure! Yes! Give in to it. Fill yourself with Despair. Show me! Show ME!"

"There you are..." The ripples of the barrier danced faster and sharper, obscuring the vision beyond even more. But millennia of staring at the same portal allowed Zetsubo to see far better than any mortal would have. The sight of his 'pet' thrashing about, throwing punches and kicks about him, and shattering the very ground upon which he walked excited Zetsubo as no other ever had.

"Even better than I could have hoped. My pet is a warrior already! That will ensure my revenge will be that much sooner."

The ripples increased suddenly in intensity as Zetsubo's excitement grew, wiping the scene away in what was, even for him, an impossibly fractured vision.

"...no..." he whispered. "...no... You cannot take my pet from ME..."

"...no..."

"NOOOOO!!" With a howl, eerily echoed from beyond the barrier, the Zetsubo's prison was bathed in the fires of the Incarnation of Despair. The barrier, hastily erected in the first place, and weakened from the millennia, finally gave under the last onslaught as it is effectively attacked from within and without.

--------------------------------------------

Ranma had hardly begun his meditations when he sensed a familiar aura approaching. Carefully suppressing his own aura, he readied himself for a fight. It was not very likely that Ryoga would talk before attacking.

Carefully stretching his senses toward the wanderer, he tried to determine the lost boy's emotional state. Hmm... depression, loneliness, frustration and curiosity. Wait. What was that? A tenuous thread of that other power was wrapped about Ryoga like some form of ethereal leash. It led to ... it lead back to Ranma!

His own curiosity peaked, Ranma reached out carefully and gave the strand a tentative mental 'tug.' Instantly, it seemed to strengthen, drawing some energy from Ranma as well as the lost boy. Ryoga's wandering path became arrow straight, as the strand linking them intensified. The surge of energy up the strand briefly illuminated a multitude of other threads spread out and reaching off in every direction.

Giving the thread a firmer 'tug' pulled a few loops from the coils wrapped about Ryoga and left him with a faint double image. Concentrating a bit more allowed Ranma to make out a ghostly form of a pig merged with the more substantial aura Ryoga possessed.

Suddenly, a wave of exhaustion broke his concentration. The last image he received was of Ryoga's aura fading to near invisibility as that of the pig surged to the front.

--------------------------------------------

"RanmaaaAAA! You coward!" Ryoga yelled at the hovering form of his nemesis. "I'll KILL you for what you've done!"

He began his charge toward Ranma, only to gasp as a sudden sharp pain stabbed into him. His aim thrown off by the pain and the strange double vision, he stumbled into the camp. His umbrella plowed through one image of the hovering Ranma and smashed into the small camp stove. The small battered pot resting atop the stove spun off into the night, spraying its still frigid contents about the camp. Ryoga felt the familiar change of his hated curse course over him. As his body was swallowed by the clothing he wore, he had the satisfaction of seeing Ranma's curse activate. He took even greater pleasure from the look of shock upon her face when she fell to the ground.

As Ryoga struggled within the enveloping folds of his clothing, he head Ranma's voice, heavily laden with exhaustion. "Gee, Ryoga. What did that pot ever do to you?"

"I was aiming for you, you blockhead!" Ryoga squealed out, then grunted, "Damn this curse," in lower tones.

"I know Ryoga." She responded, as if she could understand him. " 'Die, Ranma' and 'This is all your fault, Ranma.' Well, what is it this time? What horrid thing have I done to you now?"

As if Ranma doesn't know, Ryoga thought. His struggles to free himself intensified as he felt her approach. He didn't stop to think of how he knew she was moving closer... he just knew.

"Come on, lets get you out of there." Ranma said as he... she... whatever, moved the pack off of him, thus allowing him to squirm out of the heavy Autumn weight clothes he had been wearing. Quickly, he dashed to the other side of the clearing and spun to face his hated rival.

Ryoga glared at the girl kneeling beside his pack. Somehow, she looked... different. She let go of his pack, allowing it to slam once more into the ground, before turning slowly towards him. It was hard to make out details in the moonlight, especially with his piglet eyesight, but she seemed to be shivering fairly violently. What could be wrong with her? With the soul of ice technique she shouldn't be bothered at all by this Autumn night air. He settled further into his modified pig-fu stance as her luminous eyes fell upon him. They almost seemed to glow in the cool moonlight.

"Come on Ryoga," she said wearily while carefully picking up her water bottle from nearby. "Lets get you back to your human form. Then, you can tell me all the horrible things Ranma has done to you this time."

Reminded of his anger, Ryoga growled and began focusing for an attack. He knew he was no match for Ranma normally, but maybe now... just maybe, he could beat her now.

"Please Ryoga," Ranma called from where she knelt, cradling the water bottle in her hands,"Nothing will ever get resolved if you won't talk to me. We can fight all you want afterwards, but wouldn't you want to be you instead of P-chan?"

P-CHAN! Ryoga growled again at that, but forced the anger back. It would be easier to defeat the coward as a man, instead of... instead of... instead of like he was now. Warily, he approached his nemesis.

"Thank you." She whispered as he approached.

When he was within reach of her, she closed her eyes and clutched the water bottle tighter. Ryoga opened his mouth in a snarl as he was about to yell... errr, squeal... at her in anger when the snarl abruptly vanished and his jaw dropped.

Her face bore the same five marks he had seen, but ignored before. Two slightly curved slash like marks under the corner of each eye, and a single larger starburst centered on her forehead. All of them began to glow faintly as her face contorted into a scowl of intense concentration. A flare of light drew his gaze down, to the water bottle clutched firmly in her hands. Her hands took on the same dim crimson radiance as the marks on her face. Almost instantly the water within the bottle began to steam. A wave of warmth briefly washed out from her before the glow on her hands and face fluttered and died.

Dumfounded, he stared at her. Not once throughout the display had he felt Ranma gather any ki. He barely registered the motion as her eyes opened once more and her hands carefully tipped the bottle over to pour an unsteady stream of hot water over his piglet form.

The activation of the curse did not go without notice, however, as he was suddenly wet, in a clearing, at night, and with the breeze it was COLD without his clothes on. Darting over to his pack, he dried off and dressed in record time. Spinning, he shouted out, "NOW, Ranma! ...HEY!"

"DAMN YOU RANMA! Wake up so I can kick your ASS!" he bellowed at the slumped form of his rival. Darting forward, he slammed into the unmoving form of his nemesis, sending her sprawling in a uncontrolled tangle of limbs and hair. "HA! Is that the best you've got Ranma? Get up and fight me... you... you coward!"

Ryoga glanced down and grimaced in annoyance at the hot water trickling out of Ranma's dropped water bottle. Stepping out of the small puddle, he studied his rival again, paying closer attention. He took in the pallid skin tone. Even taking into account the wan moonlight, she looked unusually pale. She lay in a twisted and uncomfortable position, and a stream of dark liquid snaked from her slack mouth.

"R-ranma?" Her only response, another ragged breath.

"Come on Ranma... This ain't funny!" Stalking over to her, he snagged her by the front of her blouse and shook her like a rag doll. "You are tougher than this, damnit! Stop fooling around. How am I supposed ta kick yer ass if you won't fight back?"

--------------------------------------------

Zetsubo Hagesii opened his eyes. For the first time in several thousand years, he had eyes. For a long moment, he luxuriated in the simple pleasure of vision. Gradually, he opened to the other senses as he stretched, popping several joints into place in the process. Pain flooded through him. Pain. Even that was a wonderful change. Ignoring it, he let his 'host' deal with it... not that the man had a choice. Looking around, he was surprised to see the amount of damage inflicted on the area by the struggle his host had just undergone. Not bad. Not bad at all.

Frowning, he finally looked over the body he now possessed. It certainly would not have been his first choice, but then again, now that he was free of that damned prison... he had plenty of time to train or find another. Standing, he swept through a few basic maneuvers. He was pleased to note that the host had a well trained body. Again, not bad.

Sensing her presence without looking, he called out softly, "Hello, sister-dearest." Turning away from the deep shadows of the rubble, he moved to the center of the softly illuminated yard. "I am most... upset with you..."

"MMmmm," she purred, wrapping her arms about him from behind, "I love it when you get... angry, brother-dearest."

"Hmpf! Of course you do, Gekido," he grumbled, "of course you do. Tell me, why this one?"

"Well... you did specify a warrior..."

"From your reports, we both know there are others that are better than him."

"True. But they all have a stronger will... or other problems. Surely you didn't want to deal with the pig-boy's wonderful sense of direction..."

"...No."

"...or the duck-boy's wonderful vision..."

"...No."

"Oh! Then you must mean that cat-girl." She smirked and added, "I didn't know you wanted to try the other side this time."

"No!" He snapped, throwing off her arms. "What about Taro?"

"Yes. He is an excellent warrior. However, even though he has failed many times in his ridiculous quest, he never falls into despair, brother-dearest. His rage burns brighter each time. He would accept me long before you... and he just isn't my type."

"Hmpf... What then of that Musk Prince, Herb?" Zetsubo demanded, as he began pacing in agitation.

"No. He is far too strong willed to succumb to either of us even at our strongest, much less weakened as you now are. Besides, he is deep inside China, in his citadel, not here."

"So? What is so special about this wretched island?"

"Well, it has the greatest concentration of victims of Jusenkyo outside of the Bayankala range. This city is the one location over land where the barriers between the planes of existence are at their weakest. Granted, there are a few other spots where the barrier is weaker, but all of them are over open ocean, such as the Bermuda Triangle. I'm sure you would make a really fetching shark, or tuna." She grinned at his derisive snort.

And..." she paused, before finishing quietly, "she is here."

She gasped at in sudden pain. She found herself in a crushing grip as Zetsubo held her by the hair at the back of her head and glared at her, staring into her eyes. The pair stood like this for several long moments, her face clearly expressing her discomfort, before he snarled and threw her to the ground.

"I must have misunderstood you, sister-dearest..." he growled out, voice full of venom, as a dark green fire flickered momentarily in his eyes. "I know you cannot mean the one I swore to destroy. I know you cannot mean the very one who it was your task to prevent the return of. I know you cannot mean the one whose mortal analogs you were to track down and eliminate. I know you cannot mean the one I killed with my own hands! So, I know you did not just tell me she lives!" By the end of his tirade, Zetsubo was a raging column of green fire.

Gekido smiled inwardly. She relished the powerful rage burning in her brother as it stoked and fed her own strengths. Standing slowly, she brushed the dirt from her elegant kimono. Adopting a thoughtful look, she tapped her chin with one long finger.

"Well, you are probably right, Zetsubo. I mean, what are the chances that she would be reborn as a boy of all things. What are the chances that he would have an idiot of a father to take him on a decade long training journey, never staying in one location long enough to track. What are the chances that father would drag the boy to the very spot on this wretched planet where she died by your hands. What are the chances that she, having died at the same instant as a divine level reincarnation spell, would have a trace of her soul linger at that very spot just waiting for a chance to reunite. I certainly can't be to blame for that, brother-dearest."

"Hah! Face the fact, Gekido, you are a weak little girl and a failure!" The Demon of Despair smirked.

Gekido's eyebrow twitched as she forced herself to remain calm. The idiot had just been released. No, it wouldn't do to kill him, yet...

"Is that so, Zetsubo-dear? I was tasked with the elimination of any girl child born as her mortal analog. The fact is, there is not a single girl child on this worthless ball of mud born with even a spark of her soul that lived beyond her first year. I know, brother-dearest. I made sure of it! My task has been accomplished. My standing is secure! You are the one who failed. If you wish to receive any further assistance from me, you had best change your tone quickly and drastically... little brother."

----------------------------------------

"Hey there, kiddo! You are one hard person to find." A sultry voice penetrated the haze of pain and exhaustion. Groaning, Haisano blinked her eyes open...

"GAH!" she yelped as she blurred away from the glowering visage of Ryoga. Since when had he sounded like that?

"What the...?" she blurted before trailing off. Before her, Ryoga stood, his fist raised with his usual angry expression and dull green aura of depression. Dangling from his other hand like a limp doll was... herself. He was not moving. Correction... nothing was moving... except...

Spinning in midair, she found herself nose to nose with...

"Boo!"

"Gah!" Haisano yelped for the second time and found herself hovering four meters above the immobile Ryoga. "Don't do that!"

Smirking, the woman drifted up to her level and replied, "Why not? It is so much fun!"

"Who... who are you? I feel I should know you."

"Yes. You should know me." Looking about, she shook her head. "But, this will never do. Perhaps this will spark a memory."

With a wave of her hands, the darkened clearing and figures of Ryoga and Haisano disappeared with a ripple. The sky overhead lightened to a brilliant blue as the moon changed to the sun. Clouds rolled through a valley below the cliff the pair found themselves hovering over. Resting on the edge of the cliff, eyes closed as she basked in the warm summer sun, was a young red headed teen dressed in a threadbare gi. Haisano instantly recognized herself, but couldn't remember ever having done this. She hadn't word a gi like that since...

Her eyes widened as she took another look around. This... this was Jusenkyo. Turning to the stranger, she began to ask a question, but found herself hovering alone. Blinking, she looked back down as she heard a started yelp from below.

"W-who the he... he... HECK are you!" the younger Ranma stammered at Haisano's companion.

Ranma shivered as the woman responded with, "Hiya Kiddo! I'm glad to see ya."

"Uhhh..." Ranma replied "do I know you?"

"In a way." the tanned woman replied, "I'm afraid you aren't supposed to be awake yet."

"What d'ya mean?" Ranma asked, echoing Haisano's own thoughts.

The hovering woman held out a silver piece of jewelry to the redhead. "Here."

"What's this?" Ranma asked, looking at the clasp before stiffening and jumping back. "Hey! I ain't wearin no girly stuff like that! I am a Guy!"

Haisano smirked for a moment before her face froze, and an expression of wonder began to replace the surly smile.

"Not at the moment, Kiddo. But, if you keep this on you, you will be able to be Ranma without the pain." The golden skinned beauty replied as Haisano echoed her word for word from above.

Ranma's eyes lit up at that. "Y-you mean, that'll cure the curse?" The hope in her voice brought tears to Haisano's eyes as she shook her head and whispered, "No..."

Shaking her head slowly, her silvery hair rippling in the air, the floating woman explained, "No. What it will do is allow you to BE Ranma without the headaches. Water will still change your shape, but you will be able to be Ranma again."

The young red head pondered the offering for a few moments, before she stepped over to the woman and accepted the gift. She looked at the small silver amulet for a moment before looking up at the smiling woman.

"So... What now?" She asked. "If I wear it, Oyagi will probably steal it. I can't leave it in my pack for the same reason."

The woman's smile turned into a smirk as she gestured for Ranma to turn around. Taking the amulet back from the redhead, she proceeded to braid the girl's hair into a pigtail. At the base of the pigtail, she wove the amulet into the hair, concealing it, before braiding the remainder. Then, before the girl could react, she murmured a quick spell, sending the redhead into a deep sleep. As the redhead slipped into the enchanted slumber Haisano's companion said to her softly, "Don't worry Kiddo. You won't remember this until its time..."

Before Haisano could react, the scene blurred again returning to the darkened glade where she had set up camp. Looking over at the woman she now recognized, she glared silently until the silver haired woman's smirk faded.

"Why?" Haisano asked.

"Ahhh... 'why' what?"

"I didn't fall into the Nyaniichuan. Why did you make me forget that? Why did you make me forget you? Why did you make me forget... ME?"

Sighing, the woman replied slowly. "I did remove your memories of the First Spring and myself. Because of who and what I am, I cannot reveal myself to mortals. Until recently, you were just that. Mortal. Had you retained memories of what you could be... then the events of the past two years would have been drastically different. It was hoped that this day would never come, but... it has. When you awoke your powers earlier this year, events were set in motion that cannot be stopped. Now, you must awaken fully and face what is to come. However, I did not make you forget yourself. Even now, you are not... YOU, Haisano."

"What do you mean, I am not myself?" Haisano demanded, "Of course I am myself! Who else would I be?"

You are far more complete now than you were at Jusenkyo. That is true. Ever since Jusendo, you have recovered most of yourself. However, there are parts still missing. You must recover as much as possible before you face Zetsubo again."

Haisano's eyes narrowed. This woman was repeating what she herself had felt earlier this evening. She had not spoken of this with anyone. "What do you mean? And what the heck do I have to despair about?" Aside from loosing nearly everyone she had once cared for.

"Not despair, as in the emotion, but Zetsubo Hagesii, the Demon of Uncontrollable Despair... your greatest rival. Perhaps... Perhaps it would be best to show you." Haisano's companion was about to wave her hand, but a firm grip upon her arm stopped her.

"Before we go anywhere... would you be so kind as to tell me... WHO THE HECK ARE YOU!" the red head snapped in obvious irritation. "I can't just go about saying 'Hey You' and stuff."

Startled, the blonde woman paused. "Ummm. I didn't introduce myself?"

"No! You were too busy pullin' that appearin' in fronta my face trick... AGAIN." Haisano growled

"Oh... Sorry." She grinned sheepishly. "I am Urd, Goddess of the Past, Second Class, Limited. Here's my card."

Haisano blinked, and accepted the offered card and glanced at it and rolled her eyes. "Uhh... Great. A Goddess." A goddess with a business card no less, she thought.

Urd's grin broadened "Yes. Just like you."

"W-WhaAT!?" Haisano sputtered.

Urd pulled a gilded scroll from nowhere and began reading. "Sol Haisano, Warrior Goddess of the Sun, First Class, Unlimited. Secondary aspects of Honor and Battle. Status: 3E18012.8.23 Inactive-File Corrupted. See linked file date 3E18012, Silver Millennium, End of. 5E6982.6.12 Status Update: CLASSIFIED." Rolling the scroll back up, she handed it over to Haisano.

She stared blankly at the scroll for several minutes. "Goddess of the Sun?"

"Yup."

The floating red head looked up at Urd, and asked again. "The SUN Goddess?"

"Yes... well it was commonly called Sol then, but yes. You were the Goddess of the Sun."

"Yeah. Right." disbelief was plain to hear in her voice. "You expect me to believe that I am a goddess. But not just ANY goddess. Oh no. You say I'm the Sun Goddess." Haisano started laughing. "here and I thought that was Amaterasu Oomikami."

"I never said you still held that position, Haisano."

"Huh?" Haisano stopped laughing. "Oh... well then. Thanks for the laugh. I needed it."

"In fact, Amaterasu Oomikami is your replacement in the Japanese pantheon. She did an excellent job at assisting in the recovery from the chaos your... departure had on everything. Since then, no single God or Goddess has held that office. It is just too important to risk like that again."

"What do you mean?"

"Look Kiddo, we really don't have enough time for this. I may be the Goddess of the Past, but I cannot maintain the bubble forever. You need to understand. YOU are a kami," Urd stated. "You have always been a kami. But, unless you can recover more of yourself, you will not be ready to face Zetsubo. He is awake, and moments before I interrupted your little fight here, Gekido helped him find a new host. Will you allow me to show you your past, and who you face?"

"Uhhh. Look, I don't believe you. I mean, I can't be a megami for Kami's sake... err, no pun intended. Sure, the spirit of the spring is powerful and all, but it just don't make sense. How can a goddess drown? Aren't they immortal?"

"Yes, and no. Kami can die, under the correct situations. If a god or goddess exerts themselves to the point of collapse, then they are helpless. At that point, anything stronger than a common mortal can kill a them. Your fight with Saffron is a fine example. When you needed more strength, you drew upon the remains of your spirit trapped in the waters of Jusendo and Jusenkyo. After you assimilated your power, you were able to defeat him. After all, a mere demi-god is no match for a First Class Godess, even without your full strength." Urd finished smugly.

"But he came back to life! He didn't stay dead!" Haisano protested.

Urd smirked, "Exactly. Just like YOU!"

"..."

"Oh!" Urd exclaimed brightly. "You may be happy to know that the springs are no longer cursed. When you reclaimed your divine spirit, you removed the source of the mana powering the springs."

"... Uhhh, that is... nice... I suppose... But..."

"Now then, lets take you to a place where you can learn of your past, shall we?" This time, Haisano did not interrupt Urd as she once again began to chant and gesture with her eyes closed.

Haisano glanced nervously down as glowing traces of symbols appeared beneath the pair of hovering women and rapidly spread to outline a sphere surrounding them. "What is goin' on heee.ee..eee...eeee..."

----------------------------------

Ryoga dropped his raised fist as the slight form of his rival continued to breathe erratically. "Ranma?"

The girl dangling limply from his grasp still didn't respond.

"Damn you... Damn you... Why, Ranma? Why did you do it? I was so close... and you had to destroy it!" He moaned as a green aura grew about him. "I finally find a cure... and you had to destroy it... Just so you could abandon Akane."

No longer expecting a response, he shook her once more and pulled her close, so that they were practically nose to nose. "I... I will NEVER forgive you this, you honorless bastard!" He jerked his fist back, intent on striking the girl. Perhaps more pain would wake the Bakakoitsu up.

Ryoga never threw the punch, however. As much as he wanted to, it just wasn't in him to strike Ranma when he was helpless. The bastard would receive his punishment, but, by all the kami, Ryoga would not do it this way. He would get his revenge, but Ranma would be awake to know who it was who finally gave him what he deserved.

The strange marks on Ranma's face suddenly flared to life once more. Before Ryoga could react, she faded completely from his view and from his grasp at the same instant...

"ArrrrrRRRRGH! RAAANNMAAAAA!" The lost boy raged as his massive battle aura exploded about him. "Shi-Shi Hodoukan"

The massive sphere of depression laden ki rose into the air, hovered a moment, and plunged back down upon Ryoga. The resulting explosion erased the little camp from existence.

------------------------


	6. Wildfire Interlude

-----------------------------------------------------------

DISCLAIMER: I lay no claim to characters from Ranma 1/2, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Ah! My Goddess! Or any other character of any other anime that may, inadvertently or not, be within this story. They are the property of their respective authors. Characters and situations from those series are used without their consent. This is a work of fanfiction for which I do not expect nor will accept compensation.

This fiction is based upon Ranma 1/2, with strong influence from Ah! My Goddess and lesser cameos from the Sailors and some Tenchi. Ranma will not be a scout, related to a scout or have a prior engagement to a scout. Ranma will not be related to or engaged to Tenchi.

------ Wildfire Interlude 1 ------

Deft fingers danced across the holographic keyboard floating in midair. After several seconds, the keystrokes slowed, until one hand finally stopped and hovered just above the keys. One slender finger crept downward slowly until contact was made. The key lit up briefly in response to the contact as the signal was routed to the system beyond. On the transparent screen floating above the keyboard, the information flowed in waves of glowing script...

Security Passcode Identification Accepted. Download commencing.

...and so it came to pass, that upon the ashes of the First Age of Man, the descendants of man re-colonized the Sol system and founded the Second Age. The Colonials from Jurai settled upon the fifth planet after their seed ships succeeded in spreading the mighty trees of Jurai among the core worlds. Only upon the lost planet did the trees thrive in sufficient numbers to support the lifestyle preferred by the Juraian descendants, however. Of all the surviving inner planets, only Terra still harbors a few stunted specimens of these great trees on the western coast of what is termed the North American continent. It remains to be seen if the Fifth Age will kill off the last of the great trees, known as Redwood and Sequoia, by following too closely in the footsteps of the First Age.

The Second Age was a time of healing. The Colonials maintained a greater respect for and partnership with the planets upon which they lived. Gradually, the wounds to Terra were healed due to the patient care of the people of the Second Age. It is unfortunate that, unlike their Juraian relatives, the people of the Second Age did not believe in maintaining a standing military force. Had they done so, it is likely that they would continue to thrive to this day.

With the return of the enemy of the First Age, the Second Age was doomed. In the final battle of the Second Age, the youngest daughter of House of Sol, Haisano Kinhoshiko, gave up her mortal life to save her people. By drawing upon the full power of the Juraian Trees long before she was physically capable of sustaining such a power level, she transported all her people to Terra just as the foe's weapon struck. The impact of the planetoid shook the planet to its very core. Within days, the wounded planet would tear itself apart. Even as her own life faded, the last child of the House of Sol searched for survivors among the shattered wrecks of the ships that had massed to defend the world.

Unfortunately, she was unable to save her own family. Her parents had died early in the conflict while leading the police forces in their effort to defeat the foe. Her elder siblings had led the defenders in the last battle. While the last remnants of the police fleet had managed to defeat the enemy ships, they were unable to halt or divert he planetoid that destroyed their home. Only those vessels too damaged to move on their own power remained.

Haisano's last act was to attempt to recover the survivors of the ships drifting near the crumbling remains of her home. Without attempting to save herself, she used the last of the energy gifted to her by the mighty trees in an attempt to send that wounded and dying ship to join the rest of her people on Terra. Unfortunately, it was not enough to save them all. Her heart-wrenching cry was lost amidst the cataclysm of destruction surrounding her as her home crumbled. It was not unheard, however. Even as her life was fading, a representative of the Goddess Relief Office arrived to offer her any one wish.

She wished for the power to save and protect her people.

With one final shudder, the home of the House of Sol tore itself apart. All that remains now of the home of the Second Age of Man is a belt of planetary fragments separating the inner four planets from the outer six.

The Third Age began with yet another climb from the bottom. Where the First Age focused on hard science and inorganic technology, and the Second Age focused on the Biosciences and Organic technology, the Third Age was distinguished by high levels of magic. In time, Humanity succeeded in achieving through magic, what the prior ages attained using science. They colonized the planets of the Sol system.

The Moon Kingdom was thus established. To avoid conflicts among the planetary rulers, the Palace was established on Luna, Terra's single large moon. For several millennia, the Moon Kingdom persevered, where the Colonials from Jurai failed. Each planet gained a Senshi linked to it and its well of spiritual energy. In exchange for an extended life span and powers beyond those of normal Terrans, the Senshi fought to protect the Moon Kingdom from internal and external threats. The original foe never returned, but other enemies, attracted by the growing power of the Moon Kingdom, did appear from time to time. Each time, the Defenders of Love and Justice persevered. Throughout several generations, they protected the Moon Kingdom.

Sixteen thousand years after the end of the Second Age, a burst of energy was detected deep within the asteroid belt. When the defenders of the Moon Kingdom arrived, they found the drifting hulk of a barely living tree-ship. The faint signal broadcast from it was identified as a distress beacon. Eventually, the nearly eighty survivors were rescued before the tree-ship itself finally died. In time, they were settled upon Terra, the third planet. At first, this was to allow the Kingdom to keep a close watch on these refugees from the distant past. Eventually, they earned the trust of the Moon Kingdom and were granted full citizenship. Their descendants gained the reputation of being fierce and loyal defenders of the Kingdom. The only reservation the other subject states had with the Colonials, was their insistence upon venerating Sol as an aspect of divinity. They respected and served the Moon Kingdom with a passion and loyalty only exceeded by the Senshi themselves, and yet, their hearts were given to the star instead of the Queen.

A little over one and three quarter millennia after they first appeared, the descendants of the colonials earned for themselves their own nation. There, they were free to practice their beliefs as they saw fit so long as their loyalty to the Moon Kingdom was assured. The rugged lands of Jusendo had new inhabitants.

Near the same time, two beings returned to the Sol system. Eighteen thousand years had twisted the spirits of the beings into dark parodies of their former selves. The spirits of vengeance survived by stealing the bodies of others for their own use. They called themselves Zetsubo and Gekido Hagesii, self-styled demons of Uncontrollable Despair and Uncontrollable Fury. They aligned themselves with other dark forces at work in the Moon Kingdom, and fought to overthrow the government they saw as usurpers to their rightful place. The elder siblings of the House of Sol had returned.

The beings known as Zetsubo the Demon of Despair and Haisano the Goddess of the Sun fought several time over the next two hundred years. Never did their conflicts occur when the Senshi were near to interfere. However, each time it seemed Zetsubo was going to succeed, Haisano would appear to thwart his plan. Strangely, Gekido was much subtler in her approach. She never extended herself to actual combat. Her plans and minions may have been defeated, but she never fought directly.

Finally, two hundred years after the colonials established the Kingdom of Jusendo, the forces of darkness united into one unified assault on the Moon Kingdom. The Senshi were forced to divide their attention towards too many simultaneous assaults. One by one, the valiant defenders of the Moon Kingdom fell. On Terra, Gekido once more manipulated events from behind the scene, feeding Zetsubo's army with humans twisted into near mindless beasts with the unreasoning fury consuming their souls. Zetsubo himself had finally succeeded in possessing the body of the Prince of Jusendo, the finest warrior of his generation. With the stolen skills of the warrior prince and his own considerable powers combined, Zetsubo was able to overcome Haisano, Goddess of the Sun after she once again sacrificed herself for the descendants of her people. Without the power of Yggdrasil backing her up, Haisano was unable to maintain the power level required to succeed in defeating her opponent. She did succeed in delaying Zetsubo's victory until Queen Serenity's own sacrifice sealed away most of the enemies of the Moon Kingdom in a pocket dimension.

Gekido Hagesii was freed sometime during the Fourth Age of Man. It is possible that she had a role in the temporal war that resulted in most of that timeline being erased from existence.

With the Fifth Age of Man, humanity once again crawled up from the ravages of destruction...

The stream of information halted abruptly as a door opened nearby. A single line of code flashed on the screen before fading away.

Unauthorized Presence Detected. Up-link Terminated.

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	7. Wildfire Chapter 5

Ryoga stared in shock as Ranma faded abruptly from view. At the same time, he lost his grasp upon the girl-cursed boy. Once more, he felt, he had been tricked by his sometimes friend, sometimes rival. Once more, he felt his anger and depression soar out of control.

"ArrrrrRRRRGH! RAAANNMAAAAA!" The lost boy raged as his massive battle aura exploded about him. Trembling, he stared at the place where Ranma had been, as he gathered his ki and his thoughts whirled. Ranma, the source of all his troubles was gone. Ranma, his greatest rival, has tricked him again. Ranma, his only friend, has abandoned him once more.

"Shi-Shi Hodoukan," he yelled, thrusting the gathered depression away. For a moment, he felt refreshed. For a moment, he was relieved the burden of his built up angst. The massive sphere of depression laden ki rose into the air and hovered a moment.

The lost boy gazed up on his creation as it hung in midair for a timeless moment. Without the weight of the depression, Ryoga was able, if briefly, to think clearly. He sought for the presence of a familiar feeling, one that he had become very familiar with over the past few years. His eyes widened as the expected sensation was missing. That subtle tug that had led him since Jusenkyo was missing. That fragile thread of ki that guided him faithfully to his most sought after destination, was no longer there. Somehow, he knew it was all Ranma's fault. His world turned green once more with the haze of depression as the ki plunged back down upon him. The resulting explosion erased the little camp from existence.

-----------------------

DISCLAIMER: I lay no claim to characters from Ranma 1/2, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Ah! My Goddess! Or any other character of any other anime that may, inadvertently or not, be within this story. They are the property of their respective authors. Characters and situations from those series are used without their consent. This is a work of fanfiction for which I do not expect nor will accept compensation.

This fiction is based upon Ranma 1/2, with strong influence from Ah! My Goddess and lesser cameos from the Sailors and possibly Tenchi. Ranma will not be a scout, related to a scout or have a prior engagement to a scout. Ranma will not be related to or engaged to Tenchi.

------ Wildfire Chapter 5 ------

Night settled across the island nation of Japan as the world continued on its relentless dance through the heavens. Sheltered from the noise and light of the city, a small shrine housed two kneeling figures. Although it was a public place, they were the only ones present at that time. One of the pair stood with the easy grace of a trained athlete and moved to the doorway. In the twilight gloom, the man's features blended easily into the shadows, obscuring his identity. Glittering eyes gazed steadily toward the south, as if seeking to see through the thick growth of tress surrounding the lonely shrine.

After a moment, the other figure arose and stepped to the side of the man. The second person's shorter stature and generous figure revealed her gender, even as the shadows cloaked her identity as well. A slender hand placed upon the forearm of the man drew his attention to her.

"It has begun?" Her melodic voice was undeniably feminine.

The man turned to face the south once more before nodding slowly. "Yes."

The woman sighed and lay her head against the man's arm. After a moment, she asked, "Do you believe all of this has worked? Will they finally awaken?"

"I pray that it has," he replied as he turned and pulled her into a gentle hug. "I have prayed for that outcome from the very first day they arrived. I failed in my duty to her once before. Kami willing, I will not fail again. One way ot another, they will be the ones to restore the balance."

"True, if they are one. If not..." she paused, as the pair considered the remark before changing the topic. "Will they forgive us, do you think?"

The man hugged her tighter for a moment before relaxing his grip and looking off to the south once more. "Whether or not they forgive us does not alter our task. We must fight on as we always have, and perform our duty to the best of our abilities."

After a moment of silence, the woman spoke up once more. "I would not look forward to facing them as enemies."

"Nor would I," he replied,"Nor would I."

Both fell silent once more as they returned their attention to the bustling city beyond the canopy of the sheltering trees.

-----------------------

The golden brilliance of the setting sun cast the sky with a vibrant wash of colors. Golden white faded into flaming reds and oranges and finally a deep umber on the far horizon. Below, clouds reflected the sky's brilliant show with their own individual wash of silvers, golds, and reds. One feature stood out amidst this riot of color. A large island hovered in midair, looking as if it had been ripped from the earth. Although the underside was a jagged collection of stone and earth, the top of the drifting island was lush with a plant life. Several small streams flowed from a fountain near the center. Their path led a winding course across the gentle slopes of the central hill of the island toward the rougher region near the edge, and finally plunged off the side in a silver spray that scattered rapidly to the winds.

Centered at the highest point of the island, a raised platform of polished black marble glistened as it reflected the perpetual sunset. Surrounding the platform, a ring of gleaming white and gold marble pillars supported a partial dome of translucent white crystal. Only the apex of the dome, the part directly above the black marble platform, was open to the sky above. Intricate gilt inlaid tiles radiated from the raised dais, continuing the octagonal shape of the marble out beyond the ring of pillars to the series of steps leading down to the natural paths leading off into the surrounding trees.

A breeze sighed through across the island, rustling the trees and setting several crystal chimes to singing as they danced among the trees. The breeze quickly died as a feeling of power began to build around the glittering marble and crystal structure. In moments, the clear sounds of the crystal chimes fade, but the sense of power only grew.

Centered above the central dais, a pinpoint of brilliant blue light appeared abruptly. Runes on the black marble platform began glowing softly as the spark rapidly swelled and at the same time dimmed to form a large faintly luminescent sphere. Crackling energy snapped between the pillars in response to the surge of power hovering over the platform.

More bolts of energy lanced between the sphere and the paltform, building rapidly in intensity, before both erupted into incandescent brilliance. With a thunderous crash of discharged power, the sphere exploded outward, sending a shockwave rippling through the air. The glow faded to reveal a pair of figures hovering above the surface of the dais.

Haisano glanced around nervously as her eyes cleared from the brilliant flash of energy. The Jubaan District park had vanished, only to be replaced with a different park, with the sun low in the horizon. She found herself hovering about a meter above a large black stone slab. It looked to be two meters across. On it, a tracery of runes glowed with a subdued blue radiance. The runes somehow appearing to be glowing from just under the surface of the shiny black stone.

Looking around quickly, she noted the absence of anything that would indicate she was still in Japan, much less Tokyo. Suddenly, whatever was holding her in the air stopped. With a startled squawk, she fell to the black marble and found herself looking at the sky through the circular opening in the dome over the dais.

Urd's smirking face drifted into view above her, eyes twinkling, as she hovered over the confused redhead.

"Urd?" Haisano asked.

"Yes?" the silver haired goddess asked after a moment.

"W-what have you done?" she asked. "Where have you taken me, and why?"

"Well," Urd drawled out. "We are at what my sisters and I call The Observatory, although it had a different name in the past. From here, you will have the opportunity to remember your past without interruptions. It exists outside the flows of normal time and few have reason to visit here anymore. For now, this is your home."

The redhead sat up and faced the Norn. "What do you mean, my home?"

Urd smiled broadly at Haisano as she drifted back and rolled upright to face the youth directly. "You will find everything you need on this island. Study, train, and learn of yourself, Haisano. I will return when I can."

"Hey!" Haisano began to protest, but cut off as the runes in the stone below the Norn flashed blindingly. When her vision cleared once more, Urd was nowhere to be seen.

-----------------------

After leaving Sailor Mercury to look after Mars, the remaining Senshi cautiously moved toward the other end of the park. It was easy to see where the explosion had occurred, unless the city Parks and Sanitation department had fallen behind, the flattened copse of trees was an obvious clue. The fact that the area was still smoking slightly from the blast was another.

The trio dashed across the open, grassy field towards the ruins of the small wooded area. Their advance was abruptly halted when Sailor Moon tripped over something with a metallic clang and fell to the ground in a tumble of long limbs and hair.

"Owww..." Moon moaned, clutching her head where her odangos had been mercilessly tugged during the unanticipated tumble. Finding another source of discomfort, she rolled off of a mangled piece of aluminum that may once have been a camping cook pot.

"Sailor Moon," the other blonde Senshi called out, "are you okay?"

"I - I think so," Sailor Moon responded, stifling a sniffle. Landing on that little pot hadn't hurt, thanks to the magical protection from her uniform, but the inadvertent yank on the hair had brought tears of pain to her eyes.

Sailor Venus hauled her teammate to her feet, saying, "Come on then. Jupiter went on ahead alone." Turning, she ran after the tall Senshi of Jupiter while dragging Usagi along by her arm.

-----------------------

Makoto, in her alternate guise as the Senshi of Jupiter loped ahead of her two teammates, intent upon reaching the scene of the battle. Smoke was still rising from the corner of the park where the blast had originated, so she believed that there might still be time to save whomever was being attacked. She was so focused on getting to the battle, that she failed to notice that Sailor Moon had tumbled to the ground or that Venus had stopped to help her.

She leapt onto the lower branches of one of the few surviving trees and surveyed the scene. Flattened shrubs and small trees ringed what appeared to be the remains of a small campsite. Two large backpacks lay just outside a small steaming crater with a singed body lying face down at the bottom of it. The tattered remains of a small tent lay draped over the splintered limbs of a tree on the other side of the clearing. Jupiter's searching gaze snapped back to the still form after her quick scan showed nothing else in the area.

After dropping to the ground with practiced ease, she carefully approached the crater. Her gaze continuously jumped from scanning the surroundings to watching the figure in the crater. When no Youma leapt out at her from the ruined brush, she relaxed, moved down into the shallow depression and knelt next to the apparent victim.

Now that she was able to get a closer look, she saw that he was a slightly older boy, probably in high school. He was dressed in a yellow linen shirt and dark brown pants. A spotted bandanna and leather boots with strap leggings completed his ensemble.

Fearing the worst, Jupiter reached out to roll the older boy over. He was heavier than he looked. Even so, she was able to roll him onto his back. This earned her a pained groan from the boy. She sighed with relief. He was still alive. Looking him over once more, she began to flush a bit as she muttered, "Man, what a hunk!" She blinked out of her momentary daze as she heard something approaching at high speed. Jupiter took a defensive stance over the unconscious boy. She wasn't going to let anything hurt him anymore.

Two figures appeared in the branches of the very same tree she had first jumped into and one shouted, "Hold it right there! Parks are for the enjoyment of the people... oh. Jupiter, where is the Youma?"

"Wherever it is, Sailor Moon," Makoto shouted back, slapping her right fist into her other palm, "it better not come back here."

"Did you find anything? Anything at all" the other blonde Senshi asked.

"Yeah," Jupiter replied, "there is a civilian down here, and he looks hurt."

"Is he cute?" the Senshi of Venus asked as she and Sailor Moon jumped down from the tree and ran over to the small crater. They reached the edge just as Sailor Jupiter jumped out. Makoto landed with a grunt, set her unconscious passenger down and propped him up against one of the packs.

"Oh my, GOSH!" Minako exclaimed once Jupiter moved enough for her to get a look at the victim of the attack.

Her sudden outburst startled the other two Senshi. "What? Where?" Jupiter demanded as she spun about, looking for whatever had startled Minako.

"That's HIM!" the Senshi of Venus squealed, pointing at the older boy.

Sailor Moon looked at where she was pointing. "'Him' who?"

"Him!" Minako repeated. "You know. The guy I was cha... er, following earlier today." She rushed to his side, pulled his head onto her lap, and brushed aside his unruly bangs. Strangely, even though his clothing was scorched and tattered, physically, he didn't seem all that injured.

"Hey, I found him!" Jupiter protested. "I should be the one cuddling him, not you!"

Ignoring Jupiter's outburst, Minako looked up at her teammates and asked "What kind of monster would do such a thing?"

A groan form older boy drew their attention to him once more. He twitched as his eyes fluttered open and stared blankly at the sky. A fist rose shakily as he muttered, "R-Ranma Saotome, D-damn you. I'll never... forgive..." He broke off abruptly as his eyes focused on the three figures leaning over him. His gaze tracked slowly from Sailor Jupiter to Sailor Moon, and finally came to rest on Sailor Venus. He twitched again and flushed brightly before passing out once more, this time with a trickle of blood seeping from his nose.

The three scouts looked at each other for a moment before their gazes hardened and all nodded in silent unison.

-----------------------

Skuld glanced once more at the SkuldScan Super Bug Tracker Mk II as she hurried down the road. "Drat!" she thought. "The Alpha got away. But at least the Beta is still there. I'm sure to get him this time. And, I'm gonna do it myself. I don't need Urd's help."

Her thoughs drifted back to the conversation a short time ago.

"Urd?" Skuld called out, before sliding the door open. Stepping into her sister's room, she blinked at the sight of her eldest sister... working. The eldest Norn sat, in midair, before a Yggdrasil holo-link. Skuld could barely see her through the stream of characters flowing past. Abruptly, the link shut down before she could make sense of what was being displayed.

Sighing, the bronze skinned goddess glanced at her youngest sibling as she dismissed the remote terminal. "Don't you know how to knock, Skuld?"

"I did knock," Skuld protested, impatiently. "Several times."

"Oh," Urd replied, then shrugged it off. "What can your big sis do to you today?" A slow grin began to spread across her features.

"What makes you think I need your help?" Skuld shot back.

"Oh, then I guess you just decided to come see me for no reason. How sweet." Urd deadpanned, gazing at the young goddess through half lidded eyes.

"No, that's not it," Skuld countered. "I've been tracking a pair of big system bugs for months now. Every time I get close, somehow, they get away or switch places with someone else. Belldandy suggested I get he... that I see if you kno... I mean, that I should tell you for some strange reason, as if you would know anything about it."

A mini-Urd bounced into the room and slid to a halt beside the larger Urd. Abruptly, she vanished as she rejoined her larger self. Urd's expression fell as she absorbed whatever memories her mini-self had for her.

"Oh, no," Urd sighed. "Look, Skuld, I'm sorry, but I can't help you right now. Something has come up with an assignment that can't wait. I have to attend to it now."

"But," Skuld said, as Urd flew toward her TV. "what about the bugs?"

"Sorry, kiddo, but this is more important than a couple of bugs. I'll help you when I get back. See ya'," she said as she vanished through the television.

"'I'll help you when I get back,'" Skuld echoed sarcastically as her attention returned to her persuit. "I'll show you, Urd. I don't need your help after all. " Skuld huffed as she flew over the wall and into the Jubaan Park. The SkuldScan Mk II still detected the Beta, but a few other small bugs had popped up as well. "What a mess."

Slipping on her special glasses, she began looking for the bugs her tracker showed to be in the area. She quickly spotted one of the lesser pests clutching onto the head of one of a pair of class five restricted empowered mortals near the gates. The short haired class five was typing away at a quaint mini-comp, while the other class five knelt on the ground sobbing as the bug twitched atop her head.

"Why doesn't she just zap it?" Skuld asked herself as she approached the pair. Shrugging, she decided to take care of it for them. Gliding closer, Skuld saw the one dressed in blue react to something she saw in that blue visor of hers. The older girl turned toward Skuld just as she moved up beside the pair.

"Excuse me," she said cheerfully as she reached past the blue and white garbed class five, and bopped the bug resting on the other mortal with her debugging tool. The red garbed class five immediately stopped sobbing as the bug squeaked its demise. Skuld waved to them and moved off toward her next target... The Beta.

-----------------------

"Mars, are you okay?" Sailor Mercury asked as she checked over her teammate for injury from that strange girl's little hammer. The other Senshi blinked for a moment, and then looked back at the Senshi of Mercury.

"Sailor Mercury, what happened?" the Senshi of Mars asked as she stood up.

"That," Mercury replied. "is what I was going to ask you. There was an explosion in the park and you stopped talking on the communicator. When we got here, you were, well, distressed, about something. You would not talk to us, so the others went ahead to find the Youma. Then, this young girl with strange markings on her face flew up and tapped you with a small mallet before flying off again."

Mars looked down and closed her eyes. After a moment of silence, she shuddered, looked up at her teammate, and replied. "Well, when I got here, I sensed a strong source of chi nearby. I tried to pinpoint it by opening my senses like I do for fire readings. Just then, a huge amount of negative chi flooded the area. Next thing I remember is waking up with you standing over me."

Ami gasped, one hand rising to cover her mouth. "Negative chi? Was it a Youma?"

"No," the Rei said after another long pause. "I don't think so. None of the Youma we've encountered so far have used chi. They've been using magic to attack us. The only life force they have is what they've stolen."

"If it wasn't a magic attack, why did it affect you then?" Mercury asked.

"It caught me off guard, all right? If I hadn't been trying to find the source of the chi, then that attack wouldn't have done anything to me. It wasn't directed at me anyway. I felt a lot of self pity, loneliness and depression in it, and a little anger." She was interrupted by a surge of power from nearby that set Mercury's computer to beeping. "Uhh, by the way. Where are the others?"

"Oh, my. I forgot!" Mercury exclaimed. "They went off to where the blast landed, looking for a Youma. That is where that other girl went, too, and it is also the location of this latest energy source."

"Then, what are we standing around here for," Mars snapped. "Meatball-head might be in trouble!"

-----------------------

Skuld stopped three more times on her way to the Beta bug in order to dispatch normal system bugs trying to flee the area. Strangely enough whenever they had spotted her, instead of running away from her and her debugging tool, they ran in confused circles. One even knocked itself out against a tree instead of phasing through it. Even stranger, for some reason, the Beta wasn't moving, unlike the last time she had chased it. it was just sitting there.

She flew over the shredded and burnt remnants of the small stand of trees and settled down in the clearing beyond. Two more of those class five restricteds stood before a prone figure as a third class five held his head in her lap. The three class fives looked at each other and nodded for some reason.

"Hmmm," she thought, "those three seem normal enough." Glancing around, she saw the fresh crater in the clearing. Pooled at the bottom of it was a surging mass of thrashing furry bodies, resembling white furred spiders with the head of rabbits. As she watched, another bug wandered into the crater from nearby and joined the milling mass. Drifting over the edge of the crater, she summoned a machine looking like a rice steamer with several hoses running into it and a large dialed analog alarm clock.

"Well Mister Bug Zapper, time to get to work again," she said smugly as she activated her invention and dropped it into the squirming mass of bugs. If she wasn't able to debug the source of all these little vermin, then at least Mister Bug Zapper would keep them from spreading too far.

She glanced once again at the SkuldScan Mk II. It indicated the Beta was right over... there. Looking up, she found herself looking once more at the group of class fives and the older boy lying on the ground. She decided to triangulate, just to make certain. She settled to the ground and walked quickly around the edge of the camp to take another reading. Moving around the camp drew the attention of the class fives, but Skuld ignored them. Sure enough, the indicator on the SkuldScan was still centered on their group.

Turning to face them, she saw that the three class fives had arranged themselves between her and the boy. It looked like the Beta was in human form, too. She adjusted her glasses, increasing the resolution, and looked over the young man again. No, Belldandy had been correct. The boy wasn't the Beta. The bug was actually buried in his spirit.

As Skuld began walking towards them, the blonde with the twin hair buns and long ponytails stepped forward a few steps. "Hi there, little girl," the class five said. "you shouldn't be out this late, especially when monsters are out."

Before Skuld could respond, the other blonde interrupted, "Hey, Sailor Moon. Look at her face. Do you think she might be another Senshi?"

"Don't call me a little girl just because I look younger than you do." Skuld complained. "I am hunting bugs, and I need to get to the one behind you."

"Oh! Collecting bugs for a school project?" The brunete in the green fuku piped up as Skuld walked past them.

Glancing at the tall class five with a look of disgust, Skuld shook her head. "No, that's silly. Bugs cause all kinds of system problems. You debug them, not collect them."

"Err, what do you mean, 'debug them'," The pony tailed blonde class five identified as Sailor Moon asked.

"Well," she said as she pulled out her debugging tool. "First, you take your debugging tool."

Skuld channeled some energy into her tool, programming it, and continued, "then you load it with the appropriate debugging program. In this case, this bug is a very powerful one, so I needed to load a stronger program, and it may take more than one application to work."

She stopped over the prone boy, who was beginning to stir. "Then, you smack the bug with the tool, activating the program, and removing the bug." With that, Skuld's hammer blurred down atop the boy's head.

The class fives, who had leapt forward to stop her, were thrown away by the soundless concussion of energy as the debugging mallet connected with the bug buried deep in the spirit of the boy. Skuld herself was knocked back several feet. After regaining her equilibrium, she looked around. The crater was empty, and no more bugs were wandering around.

The boy was sitting up with a confused expression on his face as he rubbed the top of his head. Skuld flew over to him, and looked over him intently as he focused on her.

"Uh, e-excuse me, miss," the boy said, "w-w-what just happened?"

"Hmm? Oh, just a bit of debugging going on." Skuld replied as she added another program to her tool. "You still have a nasty bug in there somewhere. It's a big one too. Even bigger than that first one. But, I'm sure I can get it with this program."

The boy blinked at that. "Huh, w-what do you mean?"

"Just hold still, this won't hurt," she said, raising her mallet shaped tool once more.

"Eeep!" he yelped as he rolled out from under the blow. "N-now hold on j-just a minute."

"Hold still! This is for your own good." Skuld said, moving for another attempt.

Before she got close, another voice called out, drawing their attention. "Stop right there!"

Looking toward the voice, Skuld saw that the three class fives were once more on their feet. They appeared upset about something. Sailor Moon spoke up once again now they had her attention.

"Parks are for the enjoyment of the people. Your impersonation of a little girl and attack upon this hunk cannot be forgiven." She began making wild gestures that may have been an attempt at being intimidating. Skuld was not sure about that though. "I am the pretty soldier, Sailor Moon. In the name of the Moon, we punish all evildoers." The girl finished her gestures with her arms crossed, one fist held high, the other arm crossing over it with her finger pointed toward Skuld. "This means you!"

Skuld blinked a few times as the three class fives held their pose. She glanced over at the boy, only to discover that he was gone. While these dummies had distracted her, the Beta got away. Again.

"Say," she heard one of the class fives whisper loudly to the other, "shouldn't she be attacking us right now? I mean, that's what all the other Youma did after our speech."

"He got away." Skuld said before turning to face the three dummies once more. "I have been tracking the bug in him for three months, and you let him get away!" Winds started to whip around her as she lifted off the ground a hovered before them.

Before the three class fives could split up, Skuld powered up her quickest attack. She would show these three just what she thought of them. "You... You DUMMIES!" she yelled, lashing out with her power, backed by her bottled up frustration.

The blast washed over the three class fives. Satisfied that these three wouldn't soon forget her wrath, Skuld flew off into the night after recovering Mister Bug Zapper.

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------ End Wildfire Chapter 5 ------


	8. Wildfire Chapter 6

[Ranma/O!MG + sm + tm

The thunder of hooves was a familiar sound to the chariot's driver. Two mighty stallions pulled the chariot across the heavens. It was his duty, and, although it was a never ending task, it was a responsibility that he bore with pride on any normal day. This day, his responsibilities had an addition that he welcomed with all his heart.

She had returned home.

He laughed aloud with joy as his chariot rumbled across the sky above her home. Looking over the side, he caught sight of her near the central pavilion. Her face was turned up as she followed his progress through the air. Her distinctive crimson hair caught the rays of the sun and seemed to dance with a flame all their own. He tore his gaze away from that welcome sight long enough to guide his team down to her.

In moments, the chariot was stopped not far from where she was standing. She walked toward him slowly as he jumped down from his chariot. Grinning widely, he moved up to her and enveloped her in an exuberant hug. "Ah, Kinhoshiko," he exclaimed happily as he spun her around, "it is so good to see you again!"

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DISCLAIMER: I lay no claim to characters from Ranma 1/2, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Ah! My Goddess! Or any other character of any other anime that may, inadvertently or not, be within this story. They are the property of their respective authors. Characters and situations from those series are used without their consent. This is a work of fanfiction for which I do not expect nor will accept compensation.

This fiction is based upon Ranma 1/2, with strong influence from Ah! My Goddess and lesser cameos from the Sailors and possibly Tenchi. Ranma will not be a scout, related to a scout or have a prior engagement to a scout. Ranma will not be related to or engaged to Tenchi.

------ Wildfire Chapter 6 ------

Clouds drifted lazily past the flying island that had been her home ever since Urd had abandoned her here so long ago.

With one final, loving tap, she settled the last screen into place. It had taken her what seemed to be several months to rebuild the shrine, but the job was finally complete. Where once there was a delicate Grecian style structure of crystal and stone, now a wooden building with a distinct Japanese styling stood.

The sun dipped lower toward the cloud masked horizon. When it settled into the proper position, the warm golden rays shone full into the interior of the shrine. Each of the four walls was dominated by the wide sliding paper screens that allowed air and light to enter freely. The black marble gate stone, once elevated above the floor of the old structure, was now flush with the smooth wooden floor of the shrine. It was the center point of the building, occupying the place under the high peaked roof.

To the east and west of the shrine, the gurgling fountains and shallow pools remained. The constant sound of the flowing water formed a soothing counterpoint to the occasional rush of wind. The area south of the shrine had been extensively reworked. An ornate park of marble sculptures and tall, mazelike hedge rows had been relocated to another part of the isle. Now, a clearing of packed dirt was all that remained. This training area showed signs of constant and heavy use. North of the shrine, a small, well tended rock garden separated the shrine from another, smaller building of similar styling.

The redhead paused as a now familiar sensation gathered. She fought to control the wild and tenuous whip of energy that surged about her. However, as with all previous attempts, she found herself unable to retain a hold on it. With a brief vision of a mangled pot dancing in her eyes, her form twisted and melted. The change was not as drastic as it had been before, but there was still a still a small difference in the height of his two forms. The willowy curves of his feminine form melding into his wiry masculine frame.

He sighed as he knelt once more, faced the repositioned sun and settled down for a wait. The change no longer really bothered him. It was the fact that it remained out of his control, once again, that annoyed him immensely. In the month before Urd had brought him here, he had learned how to control his form with sufficient application of ki. Now, in attempting to control the change, he felt like he was fighting a natural part of himself. He'd had no control over the changes since his arrival.

He believed it wouldn't be very long before his invitation was answered. Although he had no certain way to determine exactly how long he had been here, he was certain it had to have been many months, or even a few years. Thankfully, his time here had not been boring. The very timelessness of the place made it impossible to be distracted by the passage of time. That wasn't the real reason, however, that he had not succumbed to terminal boredom. Were it not for his sensei and the skills and knowledge that they offered, then he may very well have gone crazy anyway. It was in just this sort of setting, when the old shrine still stood and and the sun was in that location, that he met his first sensei. Of course, he had been a girl at the time...

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Haisano gazed upon the sun as it hung motionless above the cloud covered horizon. Urd had abandoned her here, with no obvious way off this strange island, what she guessed was several days prior. It was hard to determine the passage of days when the sun never moved. In that time she had discovered her ki was walled off or blocked somehow. She could sense it, but she couldn't manipulate it or use it to enhance herself in any way. It was worse than that moxibustiation weakness point Happosai had used upon her. At least with that, she could still use her ki for movement and speed. At odd times, she could feel her level of ki fluctuate. It almost felt like she was giving her ki to someone else.

After the first few hours, once she had been able to move again, Haisano wasted no time in searching for a way off this strange mountain top. This exploration revealed that she was not on a mountain, but on a strange little island floating over and among a seemingly endless sea of clouds. She decided to explore her prison, as she saw it, in more detail when it became apparent that Urd was not going to be returning any time soon.

Throughout her exploration, the sun had neither risen further into the sky, nor set. It remained stationary just above the horizon. It also seemed much smaller than it should be, although the warmth and remained the same. Since it didn't move, every part of the island received light from the star in different proportions. One side was always in direct sunlight. The other was always in the shadow of the island itself; a form of perpetual twilight. The plants on the direct side grew thick and tall, and were of a hearty tropical stock that could readily withstand the constant heat. Most of the island's streams wound their way amongst the roots of these trees before making the final plunge off the side. The middle sections of the island supported plants with more temperate requirements. The dark side was mostly covered in ferns and similar soft light plants.

Throughout her search, she had found a multitude of places where training could be performed. All across the flying island, there were clearings and glades, pools and waterfalls. In places, clearings were filled with an assortment of fixed obstacles, beams and poles for practice. In others, the growth of the flora created a natural arboreal gymnasium. Most appeared to be for weapons use, but, she was confident she could adapt to using them to keep up her unarmed skills, if she were to be stuck here for long.

Scattered across the island, she found several large trees that stood out from the rest. Each one stood in its own pond of water which had a series of stepping stones leading out across the pond to the base of the tree. Of greater note to her, in each great tree she could sense massive amounts of ki. They greatly resembled the sacred tree at the Masaki shrine, but were several times larger. At first, she kept well clear of them, but eventually her curiosity won out over caution. She approached one of those strange trees. As she stepped out upon the first stone, she had felt the ki surge within the plant. Streamers of light shot out from the leaves and bounced off the surrounding pond. The reflected streams of light formed a broad, multi-hued beam of energy that lanced up into the clear sky above. At the same time, her vision started to black out.

Uncertain as to the cause of this event, she retreated quickly and returned to the large atrium to think. So now, she found herself staring at the burning orb hanging motionless in the sky. She should have burned out her eyes by now, but the light didn't bother her at all. Even the brilliant spark moving away from the sun was easy to pick out against the overall glare of the sun.

Haisano blinked a few times and looked away for a moment and then looked back. The spark was still there, but now it was apparent to her that the spark was moving closer and growing larger. The glittering mote of light swelled as it drew closer. It wasn't long before she could make out a shape within the brilliance.

Moving toward her little floating prison was a chariot drawn by a pair of matched white stallions. Flames leapt from the hooves of the magnificent beasts as they galloped through the sky. The chariot trailed a stream of fire behind the two flashing wheels. Silver and gold inlays ran the length of the vehicle adding to the brilliance. In the chariot, with one hand firmly holding the reins, stood a man. He was the source of the brilliant light.

As the chariot thundered overhead, casting the warm radiance down upon the island, Haisano stood and stepped out from beneath the arches of the atrium. As she did so, she heard a delighted laugh from the man. Unlike the laughter she was accustomed to hearing, the man's voice was full of mirth and joy. She stepped around the atrium, expecting to see the glowing chariot receding into the distance. Instead, she saw that is was slowing, and circling back toward her prison.

Now that it was moving slower and descending to land, she was able to make out more details on the lone occupant. He was a caucasian man, appearing to be in his mid to late twenties. His full beard and thick head of wavy golden hair streamed out behind him along with a golden cloak. Armor of European design, fashioned from small overlapping scale-like golden plates covered his torso, but his arms and head were bare. A large sword, also of European design, was strapped across his back.

The man's eyes twinkled above a broad grin as he reigned in his steeds and stopped the chariot a few meters from where Haisano was standing. He hopped from the back of his hovering chariot, setting his golden scale armor to jingling. His fur lined boots thudded onto the packed dirt of the practice ground. Standing at least two meters tall, he towered over her.

Upon the man's face, Haisano could easily pick out markings similar to the ones she saw on Urd's face, and, more recently, upon her own. Centered on his forehead, was a star burst similar to her own. At the corner of his eyes, where she had a pair of curved marks resembling claws, he had a single long diamond shape. Even more startling were his eyes. His left eye was a bright blue, similar to her own. His right eye, however, was a rich emerald green. Haisano had never seen a person with eyes of different colors before then. She was distracted enough by this observation that she was totally unprepared for him to step up to her and envelop her with his arms.

"Ah, Kinhoshiko," he cried as he spun her about, "it is so good to see you again!" Haisano stiffened with outrage at the unexpected and unwelcome contact. "Let me have a look at you," he said as he set her upon her feet and stepped back. Before he had move more than a single step, her fist flew up and embedded itself in his face. Even with the difference in size, her blow knocked the blonde stranger back into the side of his chariot.

"Are ya' done squeezing me yet?" she snapped as she glared at the tall god and settled into a ready stance. "You try something like that again, you pervert, and I'll kick your but off this rock!" Haisano was prepared for almost any reaction. The usual response she got from all the perverts was a declaration of love, or lust. The next most common reaction was cries of vengeance or for some perceived slight. Failing that, her rivals would come up with some other form of response combining some aspect of the two. She didn't expect the stranger to burst into laughter.

She stood in her ready stance and stared at the stranger in stunned amazement. She had smacked him almost as hard as she usually hit Kuno, and he was laughing at her. Her face flushed darker as her anger grew. She reached for, and found, that deep well of power that she discovered access to during her battle with Saffron. Her ki was blocked off, but this was even easier to summon than before. Winds erupted about her as her aura flared into a flaming crimson pillar of power. "And just what do ya think is funny?" she snarled as he slowly stood once more.

Holding up his hands he gestured in a placating manner. "Peace, My Lady," he said. He wiped his eyes as he continued to chuckle, "Peace. I laugh not at you, but at myself. When I was told that you had returned once more to your home I could not wait to welcome you back. In my joy at seeing you here after such a long time I forgot myself and overstepped the bounds of courtesy."

"You're darned right you did!" she snapped, "Who do you think you are, waltzing up and grabbing me like that?" Her glare didn't diminish as she waited for him to explain himself.

The stranger's chuckles died away as his amused expression faded and a sense of sadness grew. "I see. You did loose much of thyself, Lady Kinhoshiko. I apologize for welcoming you back in that manner." The man spread his hands wide as he continued to speak. "I am known as Odur, God of the Sun, Category One, Class Two, Limited. I am husband to Freya, driver of the Chariot of the Sun, and heir to Odin and Lodur." He then bowed low to her in European fashion and intoned, "At your service, My Lady."

Haisano blinked and relaxed her stance a bit when he mentioned having a wife. The power she had gathered dissipated slowly as a smirk formed on her expressive face. "Odor?" she asked. "What kind of name is that?"

The god winced slightly and shook his head. "No, not odor," he corrected with a strained smile, "Odur. O - d - U - r."

Haisano shrugged and brushed aside the correction, "Whatever. That doesn't tell me why you grabbed me like that."

"As I said," Odur replied cheerfully, "I was so overjoyed to see you alive once more I forgot that you may not remember me. I was well known to you in one of your prior incarnations, Kinhoshiko."

"Prior what?" the red-head asked as she raised a hand to forestall any other comments.

"Incarnation. As in, reincarnation," he explained. "When you were Sol Haisano, Goddess of the Sun, you knew me very well." He paused then grinned, "I was like the son you never had."

Haisano felt her stomach lurch at his comment. She could almost feel the blood draining from her face. "W-what? What do you mean, son?" she demanded.

"Well, okay, not really a son," he admitted. "You were my mentor before I was given my first domain." Haisano sighed with relief as he continued. "Now, it seems that it is my turn to return the favor, after a fashion. I have been given the honor of reintroducing you to the rules and responsibilities associated with your newly recovered divinity."

The redhead stared at his smiling face for a moment, expecting him to continue. When he did not, she muttered, "What?"

"That means," he said, "I am your new sensei!"

"What?" she repeated. She waved her hand before he replied again and added, "I mean, what rules? What responsibilities? What are you talking about?"

"Ah, I understand," Odur said, nodding. He thought for a moment before he continued speaking. "Well, I ask you, is a martial artist free to do whatever she wants, to whomever she wants?"

Haisano snorted and, thinking of a certain old pervert and panda, said, "Depends on who ya ask."

"I am asking you," the god replied softly and without the smile of moments before.

"No. A true martial artist cannot be and is not free to do, as you say, whatever she wants to whomever she wants. That is completely opposite the code. A true martial artist should use the art to protect those who cannot protect themselves. The art should not be used to injure or kill unless to protect the life of another."

Odur nodded and, with his wide grin back in place, said, "Good enough. The rules for a deity are not very dissimilar."

"So," Haisano drew out the word as she peered cocked her head to the side and looked up at the tall god from under her brows. "You are saying being a god or a goddess like being a martial artist or something?"

Odur laughed again as he responded, "Yes, or something. As a martial artist, you believed that it was your duty to protect those who could not protect themselves. The martial code laid down some basic rules for you to follow and you undertook them as well as can be expected considering how your mortal life went."

"'As well as can be expected?'" Haisano repeated with an annoyed tone of voice.

"Well, yes," he said. "Consider who it was that raised you for most of your mortal life. It is amazing that your basic nature wasn't perverted into something that would have made you totally unfit to resume your role, Kinhoshiko. As it is, you have a great deal of information to relearn and forgotten skills to unlock. There has been some file degradation, but I am confident that, given time, we can repair that damage. However, with some key parts of yourself still missing, it will not be easy."

The redhead glanced down at herself then "Hold on there! What do you mean by that. What is missing?"

Odur leaned against the side of his chariot. His smile dimmed and he seemed to consider her question for a moment before responding. "I will answer that by asking you this question. Who are you?"

"My name?" she asked. When he shrugged, she said, "I'm Ra... I am Haisano."

"Ah," the god said as he smiled slightly at her, "you were going to say 'Ranma,' correct?"

In response, Haisano shook her head swiftly, "N-no. He is just a bad memory. I am no longer that person. I am Haisano, now."

"I see." he said with a sight frown. "In that case, tell me of your parents."

Haisano flinched and her face hardened. "Oh, right," she sneered, "them. They are just as dead to me as Ranma. I have no parents!"

"Interesting," he murmured. He looked at her for a moment then shook his head and said. "Kinhoshiko, you are wrong. It is Haisano who is but a memory. Ranma is very much alive. Haisano loved her parents and honored their memory. If you were truly Haisano, you would know that. You are Ranma."

"I," she began then bit her lip. After a moment, she continued, "I gave up that name. My family rejected me. They rejected what I had become. They wouldn't allow me to make my own decisions or give me any way to keep everyone's honor intact.

She shuddered as she wrapped her arms around herself. "Don't you understand? I sacrificed my own honor to remove myself from that family. When Ranma's mother rejected me as well, I decided to give up the name of Ranma, also. I have memories of Haisano. They aren't all good, but her life can't have been as bad as my... as Ranma's. Besides, she was the spirit of Jusenkyo, I gave myself to her willingly in order to defeat Saffron and rescue Akane. Why can I not use her name?"

The blonde god looked down at his feet in apparent thought for a moment following Haisano's response. After a moment, he glanced up at her without moving his head. "If you cannot accept your life as Ranma, how do you expect to accept the full memories of Sol Haisano's mortal life? She was the last daughter of the House of Sol in the Second Age of Man. Are you sure you can deal with the reasons why she was the last? She became the Goddess of the Sun and an active supporter of the Lunar Kingdom that united the Third Age. She fell along with the Kingdom she supported. Will you be able to accept why that happened?"

"I'm sure I can accept her life... my life," Haisano replied with confidence she did not feel.

Odur pushed away from his chariot and towered over the petite red-head and glared down at her. "Well then, 'Haisano,' perhaps you can tell me what your duties as a Category One, Class One, Unlimited deity are?"

She stared blankly at him for a moment. She started to speak a few times but nothing came forth.

"Where," he continued after a momentary pause, "does your power originate?"

Haisano remained silent.

"What are the rules for using that power?"

"I-I-I d-don't..." she stammered before he cut her off.

"Who are your friends? What allies can you call upon? Who are your rivals or even your enemies?"

"Enemies?"

Odur disregarded her question and continued his questions one after another. "What was the name of your father? Your mother? Her co-wife? How about your brother and sister?"

"I had a brother and sister?" Haisano asked softly.

"How and why did you become a goddess, Haisano? That much, at least, you should remember!" Odur fell silent, finally giving her a chance to respond.

For several minutes, they stood like that. He waited patiently as Haisano looked away and thought over his questions. Eventually, she looked up at him once more and slowly replied. "I... no. No, I do not remember. Are you happy now? I do not remember any of that."

"Good." Odur said with a smile.

"'Good!'" Haisano retorted. "Is that all you have to say? You rant at me like that and then all you have to say is 'Good?'"

Odur smirked. "Yes," he said with a sharp nod of his head.

Haisano flushed in anger and clenched her fists as she fought to contain her anger at the annoying god standing near her. After a moment, she composed herself and found her center once more. She looked back up at him when he continued speaking. "It is good that you see and admit your lack of knowledge. From that beginning, I can show you how to take the reins of your destiny in hand once more. You took the first step when you ended the engagements that Genma established for Ranma. However, in refusing to acknowledge your life as Ranma, you risk ignoring what that life has taught you. Do not cheapen the life you have had or the good you have done in spite of the hardships. By throwing away that life, you do far more harm to yourself than to those who you seek to punish by it.

"So, If I am not Haisano, then who am I?"

"Ahh, now that is the question, isn't it," he said with another broad smile. "You have had many names. You were known as Haisano, Fire Talent, of the House of Sol to the people of the Second Age and Sol Haisano, Goddess of the Sun to those of the Third Age of Man. That name was yours in another life and should you choose to use that name, then that is your choice. More recently, your reborn spirit was called Takashina, Honorable Virtue. To the ancestors of the Celts, you were Edana, the Fiery. In the Gaelic tongue, you have been called Ona, the Graceful One. To the people who later became the Nyuchezu, you were Serilda, the Warrior Maiden."

"However," he continued, "you are who you choose to be. In the end, what is in a name? Recently you have been Ranma the Wild Horse and unofficially, Ranko the Wild Child. Either would suit your current incarnation perfectly. As the goddess Haisano, one of your foci was honor. In this life, you have been following that focus as best you knew how. Considering that, either Ranma or Ranko Takashina would be an appropriate name. You are, above all else, the Kinhoshiko, the Golden Star. No matter what name you choose to go by, many will always refer to you as such, myself included."

"That doesn't really help, you know," Haisano complained. "You say all that as if I have had many lives. Why don't I remember them?"

"As I had said, you have lost much of yourself. None of your past lives since Sol Haisano's sacrifice ever survived to reach Jusenkyo and merge with the part of yourself trapped therein. Your enemies saw to that. Even so, there is much of your essence still tied up in the magic that was Jusendo. In time, you will eventually recover it all. When those who bore the curse of Jusenkyo died, the part of yourself that was tied to their life force was released to once again return to the springs. Now that you have merged with that part of yourself, those fragments will return to you. With them will come the accumulation of the experiences gained from their life."

Haisano became troubled over this revelation."Does that mean," she asked," that their souls will come to me instead of being reborn?"

"What?" Odur exclaimed, then shook his head. "No, no worries about that. The souls of those cursed by the power of Jusenkyo will go on to their final destination as decreed by their life. What you will recover is the bit of your own spirit that clings to them and powers their curse."

"Oh," Haisano sighed, "That's okay then."

Odur nodded, then continued his explanation. "Unfortunately, time is not something that is on your side. There are events occurring that you are not prepared to face as you are now. So, you may need to take a more direct hand in the recovery of your memories, your power, and your heritage. Should you turn your back upon your life as Ranma, then you will find recovering yourself that much harder to accomplish."

"If my spirit is stuck to people with the curse," the red-head said, "how am I supposed to get it back? I wont have to kill them, will I? If so, I ain't gonna do it!"

"No. That won't be necessary Kinhoshiko." Odur replied. "That, however, is a lesson for another day. Going back to the point I am trying to make, what you choose to be called is entirely up to you. What other people call you is entirely up to them. You cannot force someone to use one name over another when referring to you. So, why should others be able to force you to use a different name? Do not allow the actions or inactions of those who were your family and friends decide your name or your future. Once you are fully restored, the system will log your chosen name. Be certain that it is the one that most suits you.

You should not be asking me who you are. I should be the one asking you. So, Kinhoshiko, who are you?" As he spoke, Odur jumped back onto his chariot and gathered the reins. "I must return to my duties, or Freya will be crying an ocean of gold awaiting my return."

Before she could respond, Odur let out a yell as he snapped the reins, urging his stallions back to work. "I will return, Kinhoshiko," he called back to her. "Think on what I have said."

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The young man smiled as he thought about that first meeting with Odur, his first sensei. At first, he had not thought over the issue of his name as the kami had suggested. Several visits passed before the subject came up again.

It was just after his first true encounter with the stored memories of his past life's memories. He had finally decided to investigate one of those great trees with the massive ki signature. This time, when the visions started, he did not pull back from them. He wanted to see what the tree had to show him.

He had watched, from Haisano's viewpoint, as the immense weapon of the destroyers killed her planet. He had felt her determination to save her people, even if she could not save her planet. He had felt her lifeforce being expended in powering an energy form she knew as The Wings to move her people from the doomed planet to somewhere else. He had felt the incredible surge in lifeforce as the trees added their own energy to hers and the power of the Wings multiplied by several factors, helping her to move far more people to safety than her own lifeforce would have allowed.

It would have been easy for her to save herself. It was not in her nature to save her own life when those of her people were endangered. She had not the time nor the energy to depart the planet in order to find a way to defeat the destroyers. Had she left, her people would have been destroyed. Instead, she saved her people.

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The last of her people on the planet had been relocated. At last, she turned her attention to the battle raging above. One last heavy cruiser, the Phoenix, remained between her doomed planet and the weapon that would murder it. The battered ship had no chance of stopping the planet killer or the scores of enemy vessels escorting it. Yet the ship remained - the crew choosing to fight to the last. It was a valiant, futile gesture. Her people would need warriors willing to protect them at all cost. As the foe closed in, Haisano reached out with the power of the wings, embraced the Phoenix, and pushed the ship into hyperspace.

She could feel her sense of self fading fast even as the trees continued to pour their own life force through her. It was far too much for any human, even one descended of Jurian royalty, to channel. Even as she focused on the Phoenix and their destination, she could feel the darkness closing in. Her body stiffened as her arms stretched forth toward the sun's warm radiance. Her feet sank into the rich loam and her senses sight, sound and touch faded.

The weapon of the Destroyers struck.

An entire planet screamed from the death blow.

Haisano, overwhelmed by the sudden, searing rush of life energy, lost her grip on the Phoenix. The surge of energy cast the battered craft away through time and space.

The Destroyers closed in on the stricken planet. Like carrion hunters circling a dying beast, they gathered. Their purpose became clear to Haisano. The enemy sought to capture the life force released by the cataclysmic collision and the death of an entire planet.

It was not to be.

Still tied to the lifeforce of her home, Haisano became the recipient for all the energy the Destroyers sought to steal. Her mortal shell flared and burned as the titanic energies poured into and through her. Haisano, daughter of the House of Sol, ceased to exist. Even as she died, a new being was born.

Too much power. Too much life. The being that had been the last daughter of Sol screamed. For a brief moment in time, she was more brilliant than the star named after her family. In that brief moment, the Destroyers surged closer, seeking to capture this focused source of life energy.

Haisano gave them what they desired. However, she did not give it to them in the manner in which they desired. Instead of waves of unfocused energy, focused beams of destruction lanced forth. Whatever those beams touched, burned. In mere moments, more of the invaders were destroyed than in the months since Sol's main fleet was defeated near the eleventh planet.

Like a Phoenix. arising from its ashes, Haisano erupted from the surface of her dying home. Flames shrouded her as she danced among the burning ships of the Destroyers. In the blink of an eye, an eternity of destruction passed. The Destroyers were gone. Some fled. Most remained. Those that fought, died. Those that fled, escaped to tell the tale of the prey that became the hunter.

With the last of her foe fled or destroyed, the being known as Haisano returned to the tortured wreck of her home. The impact of the rogue moon tore a huge chunk of the planet's crust away. The sudden imbalance, combined with the planet's spin sealed its fate. It was slowly tearing itself apart. She could feel her strength waning as the stricken planet threw more of itself into space.

A sense of despair drew her attention away from Sol five. It was coming from further into the system. It was from the Sol three, the Juraiformed colony world where she had moved her people. With a thought, she jumped across the system.

She popped out of subspace and for a fleeting moment thought she had traveled in time instead of across the Sol system. She hovered in high orbit over the blue-green jewel of the life bearing planet. Hurtling down upon the refuge of her people was yet another moon turned into a weapon by the Destroyers.

She lashed out with all her strength. In seconds, the surface of the moon was rendered molten. Mighty engines, used by the Destroyers to nudge the moon from orbit and send it hurtling in -system, exploded violently. The explosion nudged the errant satellite moon of the eleventh planet slightly off course and her attack managed to slow it somewhat. It was not enough to prevent the moon from striking the planet, however.

Haisano placed herself between her people's new home and the hurtling weapon of the Destroyers and poured everything she had at the weapon. She hadn't the strength to destroy the moon, but perhaps she could adjust its path and slow it enough to spare her people.

Ever so slowly, the weapon slowed and turned. She could feel her home shuddering in its final death throes as she poured its life and thus her life into saving the fragile hope for the future on Sol three. The lifeforce she channeled weakened and faltered, but she did not. Even as the last of the energy from her dead planet passed to her, she held none of it back.

The river of force faded to a stream, then a mere whisper before fading altogether. Bereft of power, her own spark fading and her world dead, the being once known as Haisano could only hope that her efforts were not wasted.

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He stood and looked out over the forest growing upon the chunk of land surrounding the shrine. Haisano's efforts had not been in vain. She gave her life twice to protect her people. First by moving them to Earth, sparing them the death of their home planet, and then by preventing the second weapon from destroying the Earth. It remained in orbit to this day as a remnant of a forgotten war. The sheer volume of life energy she threw at the moon must have saturated Earth's new satellite. Undoubtedly, this is why the Moon Kingdom that eventually expanded to colonize the entire Sol system used the moon as their capital. It was also likely the reason behind the attacks that resulted in the eventual fall of that Kingdom and the end to the Silver Millennium.

Before Haisano had faded completely, a presence had appeared next to her and offered her the chance to continue to watch over and protect her people or to pass on to the afterlife. Thus, Sol Haisano, Goddess of the Sun was born.

He shuddered as he though back on that terrible day. Would he have had the courage to make the sacrifices she did that day? She could have saved herself and her family and abandoned the planet to the Enemy. Had she done that, billions of people, men, women and children, would have died and the Destroyers would have been that much stronger and life as he had known it wouldn't have happened. The Earth would have been destroyed as well. For all intents and purposes, the Sol system would be devoid of habitable planets. Instead, She fought for her people even though she was hardly more than a child herself. She had lived the privileged life of a princess, and yet sacrificed it all for her people.

He lost his family and friends due to a conflict of honor. The were still alive. She lost friends, family and her planet to war. How could he justify claiming that he was Haisano? He could not. He would honor his predecessor and former incarnation, but, he was not and could not be her. Even if he recovered all of her power and memories, he was a different person.

In his time spent here, learning from Odur and Sif, he came to realize that fact. It would be better for him to honor her memories and uphold her ideals than to attempt to claim that he was Sol Haisano, First Class Goddess of the Sun, Honor and Battle. He could learn from her memories, however, just as he had his own to learn from. Perhaps, together, they could be greater than the sum of their parts. His name was Ranma.

Another gust of wind blew across the Isle causing the chimes in the trees to dance and sing in response. The aura of gathering power drew his attention to the gate. He turned to face it with a bit of surprise. Sif-sensei wasn't due back for more 'friendly sparring' until after Odur-sensei's next visit and he always rode in on his chariot. She was the only visitor he had received who used the gate and he really wasn't looking forward to repairing the shrine, again.

He walked slowly toward the shrine in order to meet his unexpected guest. The gate flared as a translucent sphere of energy snapped into place. The sphere faded to reveal a hovering goddess with long silvery-white tresses.

Urd had returned.

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------ end Wildfire Chapter 6 ------

Notes

Edanna - Celtic 'Fiery'

Ona - Gaelic 'Graceful One'

Serilda - Germanic 'armed maiden of war'

Takashina - Japanese 'honorable virtue' (neutral/female)

Kinhoshiko - Japanese 'golden star' (gender neutral)

Haisano - Japanese 'fire talent'

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	9. Wildfire Chapter 7

[Ranma/O!MG + sm + tm

Sailors Mars and Mercury ran into the clearing as their team mates stood staring off into the night sky. When they neared the small crater in the clearing, the Senshi of Fire slowed to a walk as her expression turned faintly nauseated.

Ami, noting her friend's distress, slowed with her. "Mars? Are you okay?"

"Yes. This must be where that negative chi was centered. I can still feel it, but I'll be okay."

A snort of laughter drew their attention to their friends. Venus, one gloved hand over her mouth, was failing to hold her laughter in as she pointed at Sailor Moon.

"What's so funny," Sailor Moon exclaimed as she peered into the night sky, "She got away."

"D-dum-mies-s!"

Usagi blinked and turned to look at the other blonde senshi. "What?"

"Y-you have d-dummies written all ov-over you!" Venus managed to gasp through her laughter.

"Huh?" Moon glanced down at herself. Across her pretty uniform, in ugly, black brush-like strokes, the word 'dummies' showed multiple times. Tears sprang into her eyes as she gazed upon the unexpected alteration to her appearance. "But...but... I'm the Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon. I'm no dummy."

"It's even on your face!" The Senshi of Love chortled.

"You haven't got anything to laugh at Venus." Sailor Jupiter spoke up, having remained silent up to this point. "After all, you and I got hit, too."

The sound of laughter was soon replaced by the twin wailing of the blonde defenders of Love and Justice marking an eerie cadence with the approaching sirens.

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DISCLAIMER: I lay no claim to characters from Ranma 1/2, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Ah! My Goddess! Or any other character of any other anime that may, inadvertently or not, be within this story. They are the property of their respective authors. Characters and situations from those series are used without their consent. This is a work of fanfiction for which I do not expect nor will accept compensation.

This fiction is based upon Ranma 1/2, with strong influence from Ah! My Goddess and lesser cameos from the Sailors and possibly Tenchi.

_------ Wildfire Chapter 7 ------ _

Her latest opponent stood ready before her, silent and unmoving, taunting her with its very silence. She studied it intently, seeking any signs of weakness. There! A flaw she could exploit. With a single careful strike, her opponent will be taken out while its innocent hostage remains unharmed. She carefully marshalled her strength and moved into position. The arrogant fool ignored her approach. She would show him! She would... NO! She would do this properly. Calmly. With purpose. With precision. Her arm drew back as she drew her breath. Like a viper, her arm snapped toward her target.

"Akane-chan!"

Her concentration shattered and the familiar rage snapped its fetters within her. Instead of a carefully modulated blow, her fist smashed into the cinder blocks at full force, crushing all of them. Fragments of the cement blocks bounced off the walls of the dojo and scattered debris across the mats.

Akane growled in frustration and glared toward the intruder. "What do you want," she growled through clenched teeth.

"Dinner is almost ready, dear."

"Fine, just, go away!"

The woman at the door hesitated, then stepped into the dojo. "Is there something wrong," she asked.

Akane's glare did not diminish. "Yes, 'Auntie', there is."

Nodoka's eyes gleamed oddly as she stepped closer. "Would you like to talk about it?"

Akane turned away from the woman and stomped over to the cleaning supplies. Snatching up a broom, she began the task of sweeping the debris into a pile. Powerful strokes of the broom sent the pieces of cement clattering noisily across the floor, failing utterly in the intended task of collecting them into a neat pile.

"Akane, it isn't polite to ignore your betters."

The angry teen froze for an instant before whirling to face the mother of her ex-fiance. "What did you just say," she hissed. Her face flushed crimson with her poorly contained fury.

Nodoka met the angry gaze impassively. "Mind your tone, young lady," she said tartly. "I said it isn't polite to ignore your elders. It certainly isn't proper for you to take that tone with me."

The Tendo girl glared mutely at the elder woman. "I won't hit her," she thought repeatedly to herself, as a form of mantra, attempting to calm down.

The two stared at each other for several heartbeats before the older woman broke the silence. "Can you not even apologize," she asked.

"I'm sorry," Akane growled, her glare no less intense and her tone not sounding apologetic at all. Nodoka, however, nodded anyway, as if her words were all that mattered.

"Good. Now, clean up here and then wash up," the auburn haired woman instructed as she turned and headed for the exit. "Dinner will be served shortly."

The soft thump of the door sliding closed was echoed by a louder snap within the dojo. Pain pierced the fog of anger, and drew Akane's attention to her hands. White knuckled hands held the snapped and splintered remains of the stout wooden broom handle.

----------------

Nodoka moved down the walkway from the dojo to the house proper. After several steps she stopped and shuddered slightly as a scream of rage erupted behind her. "Delicious," she moaned as a steady stream of expletives erupted from the dojo. At the sound of several objects striking the walls of the dojo near the door, she resumed her walk into the Tendo home, smiling all the way.

----------------

Keiichi Morisato watched Belldandy as she hugged the cat. "She looks so happy," he thought. To see her joy made him happy, too.

"May," she said, "...may we keep him?" The middle Norn's face filled with innocent hope as she looked at her mortal boyfriend. He couldn't refuse her.

"Sure," he said, thinking that sometimes, one had to go with fate. "But, he will need a name."

Belldandy gazed into the cat's eyes. "I know. I'll call him..."

"After all," Keiichi thought, "weren't they twinned souls?"

"...Velspar!"

Velspar had been willing to end existence to be with Belldandy, Keiichi recalled. As Belldandy's doublet twin, he was to have forgotten about her and proceeded with his duties. Instead, the young demon had frozen his personal time at the exact time of their pairing and then, recently, tried to do the same to the world.

It seems that even in his punishment, Velspar sought her out.

Skuld's voice called from inside the temple, breaking his train of thought.

"We're out here," Belldandy anwered.

"I found one!" Skuld chirped as she ran out onto the veranda. "I finally found one!"

"Thats wonderful!"

"I would have got him, too, if it weren't for those meddling kids," the younger Norn said. "But, I showed them."

"Oh?" Belldandy glanced toward Keiichi then asked her sister to explain.

"It all started last week when I asked Urd to help me..."

Keiichi watched quietly, enjoying his time spent with Belldandy, even if he wasn't alone with her. She had more than enough love in her for everyone. How could he begrudge that?

----------------

In a corner of the quiet room, a spark of light appeared upon the darkened glass of the television screen. The spark quickly swelled to fill the picture area with a brilliant white glow. The light erupted outward, flooding the darkened room. Streamers of illumination wrapped and twisted around as a pair of shapely bronzed legs slid out of the screen. The legs were quickly followed by the voluptuous and scantily clad torso and silver haired head of the eldest Norn. Urd completed the transit through her medium and settled to the floor of her room. The bright light dimmed to the eerie foxfire afterglow of the cooling phosphors coating the front of the cathode ray tube.

With a brief effort of will, her immaculate goddess robes shifted about and settled into a more mundane, though no less revealing, ensemble of shorts and tank top. Having settled her appearance so as to avoid drawing unwanted attention from unexpected visitors, if there were any then the attention would be definitely be wanted, the Norn of the past stepped into the hall. Upon exiting her room, she heard her sister's voices coming from outside.

"..when I asked Urd to help me, but she didn't. So, I went to Jubaan on my own."

"I am sure that Urd had a reason for not assisting you with this, Skuld."

The elder Norn decided to listen in on their conversation and find out what they were saying about her.

"You did say that a she merged with a small self," Belldandy said. "She probably reminded herself of something important."

"But, big sister, these bugs are important, too. Who knows what trouble they have caused all this time. If she had helped me, then he wouldn't have gotten away again, I just know it!"

Urd, sighed and shook her head. "I'm sorry, Skuld," she thought, "I really didn't have time to stick around and help out with a pair of little system bugs."

"He?" Belldandy asked. "You didn't attempt to debug someone else by mistake, did you?"

"Someone else?" Urd wondered. What exactly had her younger sister been up to?

"No!" Skuld exclaimed, her voice switching from morose to excited. "That is the problem. The bug, the Beta I've told you about, it was IN a young mortal. That has to be how it escaped detection for so long. Not only that, once I got close enough I could tell that he had more than one bug, too. He isn't just one big bug. His file is infested with a whole collection of them!"

The middle Norn asked the youngest to elaborate.

"Well, they were all acting weird. When I got to the park, there was one messing with this class five mortal's emotions while another class five stood nearby staring at her. I took care of that one easily enough. Then there were all these others running around in circles, like they were lost, or something."

Urd smirked as she heard that. "They couldn't be any more lost than that Ryoga boy," she thought.

"And there were more that were falling into this hole in the ground. I used Mister Bug Zapper on them," Skuld said as she continued her explanation. "And then, while Mister Bug Zapper was gathering up the loose bugs, I found him. There were some more of those class fives standing around, though, so I triangulated my readings, just to be sure."

"Really? Were they there to debug him, too?"

"I don't think so. The park was all torn up, so maybe they did try. But, they called me a kid and didn't know what a bug was. One even asked if I was collecting them for school. Eugh!"

"Why would anyone want to collect bugs?" Belldandy asked.

"I don't know. Ask Keiichi. He's a mortal. Anyhow, there was the boy, just laying there. So, I showed them what I meant. I saw that he had more than one. One seemed to be affecting his emotions, like that class five I mentioned earlier, and another was attacking his spacial perception. There were more buried in there, so, I loaded a broad spectrum program debugger."

"Oh, my. What happened next."

"Well, after I squashed the first bug," Skuld explained, "I got another look at the other bugs he is carrying. One really strong bug seemed to be part of some sort of soul bond. Another was some sort of mana feed tied to temperature and water. He woke up before I could do anything else, though."

"Oh dear," Belldandy exclaimed. "Soul bonds aren't to be taken lightly, Skuld."

"I know. I told him I was taking care of a problem, but he avoided me." Skuld paused for a moment. When she continued, her voice had taken on an angry tone. "And then those dummies interrupted."

"Who interrupted?"

"The mortals I told you about earlier, Belldandy. Those three girls? The class fives?"

"Oh, go on."

"They should have been helping me debug him, not distracting me by saying 'hunks are for hugging the moon' and stuff like that. I, er, told them that they were dummies, collected Mister Bug Zapper and tried to follow the boy so I could finish the debugging. I searched for hours but couldn't catch up to him. Every time I got close, he would disappear..."

"That definitely sounds like Bandanna Boy," Urd thought.

"Skuld." Belldandy's quiet voice interrupted the younger Norn and drew Urd's attention back to the room.

"... Yes?"

"What did you do to them?"

Urd wasn't able to hear her youngest sister's muttered response, but Belldandy's reaction was clear. "Oh, dear. Skuld, that wasn't very nice. You know that, don't you?"

"But, they let him get away!"

"Look at it from their point of view," Belldandy reasoned. "What would you do if some unknown person came up to you and Sentaro and hit him?"

"That's not fair! It isn't the same."

"Oh? How so?"

"Belldandy, I know you are trying to help me find my own way, like you did with Sentaro. But, I really need help this time. I tried asking Urd, but she was too busy with 'other things' to help."

"She has been filling in for Peorth," Belldandy reminded her younger sister.

"This was before all that suff with... well, I mean, before that. Anyway, it took all my effort just to locate this one. Then Urd and I had to go check on the system. Now that I am back, I can't find him or the Alpha. I can't go on like this. I need your help!"

Urd twitched slightly as Skuld's complaint triggered a memory. A memory of a time she didn't want to remember.

----------------

The two elder Norns watched their youngest sister make her way up the stairs to renew the accord and meet her doublet twin.

"Urd, I can't go on like this. Not anymore," Skuld said, pain and exhaustion clear in her voice. "I need your help."

Urd glanced at her elder sister. "My help? Whatever for?"

"Since the end of the Third Age, it was decided that we would have primary responsibility in watching over her spirit in order to give Sol a chance at the normal mortal life that she never had. Since my domain is the future, it was believed that I would be the best choice to undertake that task."

"I know that, ya old hag," Urd quipped, attempting to lighten her sister's mood.

"Okay, squirt," Skuld shot back. "Do you also 'know' that I am tired?"

"Uh, no?"

Skuld turned to face her younger sister. Her eyes, normally full of life, were dull and flat on her finely lined face. "When I was the youngest norn, I was given the task to watch over Sol's spirit. In that time, I have watched you and Velthandi reincarnate, grow into your position and reincarnate again, twice. I have witnessed the end of one age and the utter destruction of another. And, I have watched as Sol has been reincarnated countless times, only to die before her time. This last time was the final blow. I cannot do it again."

"Last time? What do you mean," Urd asked, "Sol has been reborn again, right?"

"No. Not exactly."

"What do you mean, no. I remember that day you had to go to Midguard to watch over her birth. You didn't mention anything was wrong when you got back, then. Why now?"

"Urd, she died before she could be born."

"What! How did that happen?"

"There was an automobile accident, while they were trying to get to the hospital. There shouldn't have been one. There wasn't one in any of the futures I could see, Urd. She should not have perished. Her mother should not have perished. Her father should not have perished.

"Sol should have been reborn that day to live her life in peace. Instead, a speeding motorist apparently failed to notice the traffic signal. While I was looking for them at the hospital, where the system had indicated they would be, the emergency services were trying to determine where one vehicle ended and the other began. If not for some unexpected assistance, I fear her spirit would be lost to us for another few generations. Instead, Sol's spirit was saved, for now."

Urd stared at her sister with a confused expressions. "If she was saved, then why hasn't she been reborn?"

"The one who helped me has not helped me yet, and cannot until it is no longer my responsibility to watch over Sol. Until then, there is far too much chaos, and the probabilities are too varied to sort them out."

"Helped but hasn't helped yet?" Urd asked before comprehension set it. "Oh, I get it. Time is involved."

"Right. I haven't been able to relinquish my duties while you and Velthan... I mean, Belldandy were growing up again. After today, you two won't need me as you have up to now. After today, I should be free pass on the responsibility for Sol and start over. Besides, those new fangled gadgets and technical flimflammery that will be appearing on Midgard need a fresh perspective."

"Why didn't you say something before now?"

"I couldn't." Skuld said, and sighed as she turned back to watch Belldandy's ceremony. "Saying anything before now would have served no purpose and could, in fact, have led to even greater problems. I couldn't tell her before now. She wasn't ready."

Urd followed Skuld's gaze. Belldandy was skipping down the stairs with a brilliant smile on her face. The pact was once again renewed.

"I need you to watch over her, Urd."

The Norn of the past nodded her head. "Of course," she said. Of course she would look after her little sister, she thought.

"She will need guidance with her power and duties."

"You've been good instructor, sis. I believe I can handle her."

"I know you can. Remember, you cannot directly intervene without Father's permission."

Urd looked at her older sister, and met her gaze. "Intervene?"

"Only when she awakens, may you make yourself known to her."

Urd glanced back toward Belldandy, currently receiving a hug from Father, and then returned her gaze once more to Skuld. "But..."

"No! There can be no exceptions! Her seal, and the seal upon the others is linked. You cannot take any action that alters her life, for good or ill. To do so could release the others before she is ready to face them."

"Skuld, you are talking about Belldandy, right?"

"Of course not. Urd, I am asking you to take my place as Sol's guardian."

"WHAT?! But, but I..."

"You are soon to be the eldest Norn. Ultimately, Sol remains our responsibility. Belldandy is not old enough to bear this burden. You are."

"But, how can you be sure? How can you know that? I only just got off my suspention."

Skuld smiled and hint of warmth returned to her tired eyes. "I know, Urd. I know because I have taught you all that I can. I know because, arguments aside, we are sisters. And, I know, because it was you that helped me that day when I thought she was gone forever."

Urd stared at her elder sister, flabbergasted. "But. I mean. And then. Blast it all. Why are you doing this to me, ya old hag?"

"Urd, of all the gods or goddesses, you will be able to relate to her the most once she awakens."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"I... I can't tell you. You can look it up once you have access to her file, though."

"What if I don't want to accept this? What if I refuse?"

"In that case, we have a hiccup in the timeline," Skuld answered softly, "with some potentially... unfortunate consequences for Midguard."

"So, I have no choice."

"Of course you have a choice, Urd. But please, let me rest. I know you have it in you to do this."

Silence fell between the two as Urd thought it through. From her memories, Skuld had always been the there to guide her as she grew and learned. The elder Norn was there when she and Mara had that fight, ending the friendship between the two half-sisters. She was there when Urd had finally achieved her first spell, unaided. Skuld was even there to comfort her when she met her... her angel for the first and only time. She couldn't, and wouldn't refuse to help now.

"Alright," Urd agreed, finally. "I'll do it."

The eldest Norn smiled warmly and enveloped her younger sibling in a tight hug. "Thanks, squirt."

"Stop calling me squirt, ya old hag!"

Shuld pushed her back to arms length and smiled at her. She could see a mischevious glint in her elder sister's eyes once again. "Okay," she said as she nodded. "But remember, what comes around, goes around, dear sister. Now, let's go congratulate Belldandy."

----------------

That day, as Urd remembered it, was a time of joy and sorrow for the Norns. Belldandy continued the pact between the divine and infernal, even though events of the last week had shown that Velspar violated the pact. Skuld handed down responsibility for Sol and reincarnated, becoming the youngest Norn for the first time since the end of the Third Age. And Urd discovered that, while the exchange of duties was underway, her new charge was very nearly killed, again, in the name of 'training.'

The discussion had, at some point during her fugue, turned away from Skuld's excursion into Tokyo and on to some cat that Belldandy was adopting. Something about that bothered Urd. She leaned against the wall just inside the door leading out to where her sisters were seated and thought about that feeling for a moment. "What," she wondered, "was it about that concept of a cat living here that bothers me?"

Seconds later, she was back in her room quickly laying out the patterns for a small gate spell. Although not required to get to her destination, the runes would help stabilize the portal, allowing it to remain open longer and thereby allowing her to the time to properly introduce herself to her charge.

"I forget all about her being there," she thought. "With Velspar's attacks on the system and all, it was probably for the best that she was out of the way, though. Still, there is no reason to leave her there alone."

**In short order, she finished the focusing runes and stood at the focal point. A quick incantation followed, opening a blue portal across space and time to the demi-plane on which she had left her charge. Without further delay, Urd moved though the glowing portal and vanished from Midgard. **

**After what seemed to her to be an instant in time, Urd floated out of the portal terminus.** "This can't be right," Urd muttered as she looked about herself with a confused expression on her face. The observatory looked nothing like it had when she dropped Sol's incarnation off a few weeks prior. Instead of a simple pavilion, reminiscent of recent Greek and Roman style, with fluted marble and crystal columns, a wood and paper structure, far larger than the expected pavilion, surrounded the portal focus.

She briefly wondered if she had somehow miscast the spell to open the portal, but a quick glance at the still open portal assuaged that concern. Although this structure resembled the temple she and her sisters currently lived in, the floor plan was more open in this one, and, at the same time, was smaller. The translucent gateway stone, the primary focus for any portal to or from this demi-plane, was centered in the room, flush with the wooden floor.

Her examination of the alterations were interrupted by a voice from behind.

"Hello, Urd. I was beginning to wonder if you had forgotten about me."

She turned and found herself breast to face with the raven haired male form of her charge. "H-hey, kiddo," she said, attempting to cover her surprise as she quietly moved away from him. "I'm sorry you had to wait a couple of days. Things were unstable there for a bit, and I was needed in sys-ops to help keep it all online."

"A couple of days," the trainee god echoed in a tone devoid of emotion. "What d'ya mean, 'a couple of days,' Urd?"

"Look, I had to leave in a hurry. I know that I did not have the opportunity to explain how to access the system from here, but..."

"You left without even checking, Urd," he snapped, interrupting her.

"Checking? Without checking, what?"

"You dropped me off, in this little slice of paradise, and told me to learn about my past."

"Yes, I..."

"And, then," he said, interrupting her again, "you leave without bothering to show me how to do that or even checking to see if it was the right time for me to be here."

"Right time?" Urd repeated as her expression hardened in response to the young man's accusing tone. "What, did you want me to leave you helpless in Ryoga's tender care?"

"Ryoga, even at his worst, wouldn't have hurt me," he countered.

"Look kiddo, if I hadn't pulled your cute butt away from him, he very well might have killed you!"

"And so, you 'rescue' me from Ryoga, show me the first time you messed with my life and then dumped me here."

"Well," Urd muttered, "I wouldn't say 'dumped.'"

"You knew that the Ultimate Force wouldn't let me leave."

"You don't know how to use your powers yet. Without some control, you could have caused considerable damage."

"I've had more than enough time to figure that part out, Urd."

"Oh, come on, Ranma. Are you back to that again? Like I said, it's been only a couple of days..."

"Try a couple of years," Ranma shot back firmly.

"... longer than I... what?"

"It has been over two YEARS, Urd," Ranma declared as the silver tressed goddess shook her head.

"That..." she said, "That's not possible."

"I've had to live thought it, all over again, Urd. This time, thought, I was stuck here, only able to watch as my life got sucked out of me every time I got hammered, punched, or otherwise attacked," he explained. "But, I figured out how it happened."

"So, why don't you explain what you think happened to me, then."

"Remember," Ranma said," back to when you 'rescued' me from Ryoga."

Urd nodded. "Haven't we already gone over that," she asked.

"Sure, but what did you do next?"

"I brought you here, so you would be safe and wouldn't disrupt Midgard until you learned control."

"Nope, not quite. I got to watch that a little while ago," he said with a strained smile, "perhaps a couple of days back. Did you forgot a little trip to show me how we first met."

Urd started to shake her head but stopped as she was reminded of that night's events. "Oh, right. I took you back... and... Oh, no!"

"Right. You took me back two years in time and made me watch as you talked to me on the cliff over Jusenkyou. Then, instead of coming back to the present, you opened another portal here, dropped me off, limited my powers and jumped back through the portal. Sound familiar?"

"But, that shouldn't matter."

"Stranding me here for two years shouldn't matter? SHOULDN'T MATTER? What is your problem, Urd. Of course it matters. I very nearly went insane!"

"It shouldn't matter because, after all, this plane exists outside of normal time and space. All you have to do is adjust the system settings from the access terminal, and you can adjust your time frame to match any time index you have access to."

"And, just when are you going to get around to showing me HOW to access the terminal, Urd?"

"That what I'm... here..." Urd's voice trailed off as realization set it. "Oh," she finished softly.

"Finally. Do you understand, now?"

The silver tressed goddess shook her head, "That wasn't supposed to have happened." She paused, then added, "it isn't enough, but I am truly sorry that it did."

Ranma met her gaze with his own cool blue eyes then sighed and turned away from her. "You're right, It isn't enough. I can't forgive ya. Not yet. You gotta earn my forgiveness. Urd."

"Earn it? How?"

"You brought me here in order to give me time to learn about Haisano and my past lives. I've only been able to view some of Haisano's past, once I figured out how to access the memories of the trees. As for my past as Ranma, I've lived it twice now, since my first trip to Jusenkyou, so I think I've had enough of that..."

"'Memories of the trees,'" she interrupted, "What are you talking about?"

Ranma turned back to face her, slashing a hand through the air in a chopping motion. "We're talking about you teaching me," he snapped hotly, "not me teaching you, Urd! After shoving this kami crap upon me and then abandoning me here, you owe me."

Urd's eyes narrowed and she frowned at him. "'Owe' you?" She echoed frostily as she met his glare with one of her own as lightning began dancing across her clenched fists. "Fine then, I think I DO have something to 'teach' you, after all."

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------ end Wildfire Chapter 7 Draft------


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